Skoshi

by Katherine Allen

Table of Contents
Part 10 appears
in this issue.

part 11

Just then, the governor’s daughter came into the room; she was the exact opposite of her father: tall, thin, with mischievous green eyes.

“Daddy,” she said, “what are you doing to these poor men? They look positively terrified. You know what the doctor said about terrorizing people: ‘It may be fun,’ he said, ‘but it’s not good for your blood pressure.’ And Daddy, I don’t think it’s very good for theirs, either.”

“Honey,” the Governor said dotingly, “I’m just finding out what happened to your birthday present. This man,” he glanced at the captain angrily, “let some pipsqueak use it. Just to save a stranded ship, or something like that.”

“Yes, Daddy, I heard about it on the news. And I was thinking — I know you say I shouldn’t, but I do — and election is this year. Don’t you think the people might like to know that their governor is a generous, compassionate man? A man who cares for others’ lives? I know you don’t, but people like that sort of thing. And, if you persecute the poor boy, you might not get reelected. Why not give him a medal?”

“So they do,” the governor said with a gleam in his eye. “Daughter, I just had the best idea. Why don’t I commend this Hara person? You know people, they like thinking their governor is a generous, compassionate man. A man who cares for others’ lives. After all, if I persecute the poor boy, I might not get reelected. Why don’t I give him a medal?”

“What a splendid idea Daddy! You are so smart! There now, you think on that, and I’ll show these gentlemen out. It’s almost time for your nap.” Not waiting for an answer, she herded the guests out.

“Thank you for your hospitality, Miss,” Captain Murphy said.

“Hospitality nothing. If I hadn’t steered Daddy in the right direction, he’d have eaten you alive! And then he would probably have had a heart attack again. Now he has a little project to work on. He’ll be fine. Goodbye, Captain.”

“Goodbye.” As Captain Murphy walked away from the house he told the first mate, “When you heard of politicians being puppets, was that ever what you thought of?”

* * *

As soon as they returned from the governor’s home Captain Murphy went off to find Skoshi. He found her in a hospital in the medical district. When he strode into the waiting room and saw Ethan, he paled.

“Captain?” Skoshi said, “Are you all right?”

“Martina’s face...” He murmured to himself. He walked over to Ethan. “You, what is your name?”

“Um, My name is Lieutenant Ethan Frazier, sir. Space Corps,” Ethan replied, a completely mystified look on his face.

“And your mother’s name was?”

“Martina Frazier.”

“No, I mean her maiden name: was it Murphy?” When Ethan nodded his head Captain Murphy just stared. “Well, then, you’re Ethan. I’m Martina’s brother. She wrote me of you. Is she still alive?”

“No sir, she and my father both died when I was six.”

Captain Murphy turned to Skoshi, “Skoshi, is Ethan your... boyfriend?” he asked. Skoshi turned bright red and was about to say that no, he wasn’t, when Ethan burst in: “Yes, sir, I am, I hope. Skoshi?”

Ethan turned to Skoshi. “Well?”

Skoshi by now was bright red, her mind was racing. She couldn’t let Ethan say that, could she? She was on the run. She was going to be court-martialed on at least four counts. Then she would get into even more trouble when she was exposed as a girl. No, of course she couldn’t, It wouldn’t be fair to Ethan, she wanted to but... “Yes.” And smiling, she then leaned over and kissed him... almost.

What could have been the best moment of her life was the moment that the governor and all his cronies chose to come bustling into the hospital.

The Governor strode over Skoshi. “You must be Mr. Takshi Hara. Sir, I would like to commend you on your bravery and your honor and valor and courage and strength and...”

His daughter interrupted, “Daddy, are you sure that’s him? Because that’s a woman.”

“What? That’s no woman, it’s a man, can’t you see his uniform? You there,” he turned to Ethan, “isn’t that a man?”

Ethan laughed, “No your honor, this is a woman, may I present to you Miss Skoshi Hara. My girlfriend.”

“Well, then, where is Takshi Hara?”

“Sir,” Skoshi said, “I am Takshi Hara, or rather I was. I pretended to be a man in order to escape life on Hon’ya, my home planet.”

“Oh, well then, can you be Takshi Hara for a few more minutes? You see, I have a medal in that name and I can’t use it for anyone else. Rather singular name, that. You can? Good. Well then. Sir, I would like to commend you on your bravery and you honor and valor and courage and strength and...”

“Daddy,” his daughter interrupted again, “they look like they’re in a hurry, perhaps you had better be brief.”

“Yes, you look like you are in a hurry, so I’ll be brief. Any way, I would like to commend you on bravery and you honor and valor and courage and strength and...”

“Daddy!”

“Oh yes. So please accept our planet’s gratitude for this service you have committed. And please attend a ceremony we are giving in your honor to present you with a medal for bravery and honor and courage and strength and...”

“Daddy!!”

“Ah, yes, well, will you attend?”

Skoshi looked at the governor with a look of shock on her face. “A medal? For... for me? Skoshi Hara? A woman?”

“Well, not precisely, for Takshi Hara, I’m afraid the medal is already ordered. If you don’t want to come to the ceremony I can just mail you the medal in a week or so,” the governor said.

“No, no. I’ll come. But, can I come as Skoshi Hara?”

“Well, the be honest, I really don’t care who you came as, providing you can accept the medal. Goodbye now.” Then he left.

Skoshi stared after them and then looked at Ethan. He smiled and kissed her.

Far away, on the planet Hon’ya, Skoshi’s father watched a news program. He saw that a woman was to be given a medal for bravery. “Fah!” He thought, “You do not give medals to women! Even if they perform the act you still give the medals to their husbands or fathers or sons, never to the woman herself. It shows too much respect.”

Then they showed a picture of the woman, it was Skoshi! And she was standing next to a young man, and any fool could see that he was smitten with her. “How dare she?” he thought. “She is an engaged woman! I made the arrangements for it myself. Now she not only runs away, but she is supposed to receive a medal, and she is obviously in a relationship with another man. No, she cannot redeem her honor.”

He turned off the video panel. So that’s were she was. The panel began to flash, indicating that he had a call. He turned the panel back on and saw that the caller was the man Skoshi was engaged too.

“Mr. Hara,” the young man said, “First you told us that they were delayed at New Edo because your mother insisted that they visit an aunt; then you told us that Skoshi was ill, and that was why we could not marry the day we had planned. I confess that I was skeptical about the fact that she has been too sick to see anyone for the last four months. But, because of my respect for you I believed you. What is this I see on the news? Is that not my wife-to-be?”

Skoshi’s father frowned; He had lied to the young man’s family. Now he would have to explain his way out of it. “Indeed I did sir. I felt that there was no reason to concern you with a little matter such as this. My mother is a destructive influence, she convinced Skoshi to leave the planet with her. Skoshi is young and malleable. She does not realize the full extent of her error. I will bring her back and make her understand. And you can marry as promised.”

“What?” the young man replied. “I have no wish to marry the creature now. She has proven herself to be below even my lowest expectations. However, in that she ran away she has shamed me as much as she has you. This cannot be allowed.

“I know men on that planet. Good Hon’yan men. I can ask them to deliver a message communicating my displeasure regarding her actions. She cannot be allowed to get away with this. For her to receive that medal would only prove our dishonor. She cannot live to receive that medal. Do you agree?” He waited to see what the older man’s reaction would be.

Skoshi’s father sat back in his chair. He realized that Skoshi must die now. There had been too much news coverage to bring her back safely. And even if he could bring her back, the government would insist that she be handed over to them for punishment. And that would mean being strangled. To be shot would be giving her too much honor. No, there was no other way. Skoshi must die. “Yes, yes I agree. She cannot receive the medal. I will help fund this message.”

* * *

The young man from the government was back. He sat in a chair across from Mr. Hara. “Mr. Hara,” he began, “You have not been able to find and bring back your daughter. You know, of course, what that means?”

“Yes. I have spoken with the young man who was to marry Skoshi. We are hiring a man to give her a message regarding our displeasure. She will receive it before the medal ceremony.”

“You will have her killed? A wise choice. Really, the only choice. No one will ever marry her now. And there is too much publicity to bring her back. I have been given the authority to issue a bounty for her, dead or alive, preferably dead. Not only will you have your man after her, you will also have every other money-hungry person with a gun after her. We’ll catch her. We’d better.”

* * *

Skoshi sat in her room getting ready for the awards ceremony. She was wearing a Space Corps official formal dress jacket over a matching black gown: the first dress uniform to be made for a woman; the Corps had ordered it special. She heard a knock at the door and got up to go see who is was. When she opened the door she saw two men in the uniform of official escorts.

“Miss Hara,” they said, “we have come to escort you to the awards ceremony.”

“I don’t understand. Ethan was going to come and get me.”

“Yes, Miss. Lt. Frazier phoned us and told us that he would be a little late. So we came as an official escort from the government.”

“Late? That’s odd. Well, wait a minute and I’ll get my coat.” After she got her coat she locked her door and proceeded to the limousine.

Skoshi had never been in a limousine before. She stared at all the buttons, and gadgets. She found the refrigerator and the television. The escort chuckled and explained some of the things. But it was sufficient to take her mind off of the ceremony. But when the limousine pulled up in front of the building where the ceremony was to take place, there were crowds, and cameras, and policemen. When she got out of the car, the crowd started shouting and clapping, the reporters started yelling questions about her and Ethan.

Suddenly one of the escorts collapsed. As the crowd hushed in astonishment, Skoshi dropped to the ground and immediately saw the small hole in his jacket. Ripping open his jacket she yelled at the guards that it was a bullet wound. The spread out thorough the crowd to find whoever had done it. As she opened his shirt to see how deep the bullet had gone in she yelled for a medic. Blood was already beginning to cover his chest and was all over her hands.

A group of medics pressed their way through the crowd and began moving the escort. Then one of them stood up and grabbed Skoshi. He had a knife pressed to her throat and began to drag her away. He yelled that if any of the guards moved he would kill her. He then began to rant that males were superior and that no woman should try to raise herself up above her place. He said that any woman who did so should be punished.

Proceed to part 12...