The Captain's Garden

The gardens were far more lush and inviting than they’d ever been. A heady aroma of flowers, evergreens, and loam greeted every visitor. Butterflies flitted between the flowers, worms and isopods burrowed in the dirt and converted detritus to nourishing soil. Beneficial fungus and bacteria worked together with the bugs and plants, while springtails kept their tiny selves busy preventing runaway fungus. A water feature in the center housed spirulina punching far above its weight class in converting CO2 to oxygen.

Jack looked on the garden with a sense of pride. It had taken him months to put together, and the enclosed environment meant that it rarely required any water input. There was enough evaporation that condensation formed on the walls and ceiling, following small channels that returned the water to where it would filter down through the landscape to the water feature.

He held the soft broom he’d been using to clean the raised, hard surface paths. The paths offered access to every part of the garden and allowed for aimless wandering with something new to see around every turn.

Jack put the broom back in the maintenance cubby. He took a last deep breath before exiting through the sealed bulkhead door to the main hallway.

“Doctor Halver to the bio lab…Doctor Jack Halver to the bio lab.” The voice on the intercom was that of the captain. Why she would be in the lab and why she would be so annoyed was beyond him. It was plain, though, in the way she said his name.

He trotted past the galley, the gym, and the infirmary to the labs. The captain was holding a glass of water and stared at him with an intensity that caused him to fear for his health.

“Yes, ma’am. How can I help you?”

She waited until the door closed with a solid click before she spoke. “You can tell me what the hell this is in my water, and how it got there.”

He stepped closer and looked at the small insect drowned in her glass. “It’s a fungus gnat. It must’ve come in on the last shipment of soil. Between the Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis and the springtails, they won’t be around much longer.”

“How did it get into my quarters, then?”

“Considering they don’t fly well, when was the last time you visited the garden?”

Her eyes narrowed. “I haven’t been since you started your project,” she said with unveiled annoyance.

Jack thought for a moment, trying to remember who had been to the garden recently. “Wait, did Jen visit on Tuesday…sometime after one?”

“Why? I mean….” She took a deep breath. “Jack, your sister and I are—”

“I know, Cari. I’ve known since we left port when you two were still trying to be discreet about it. It’s just that I caught her stepping off the path and had to reprimand her.”

Cari laughed. “Reprimand? Did you tell off your big sister?”

Jack shook his head. “No, I reminded her that the signs to stay on the path apply to her, too. I entered it in the logs, since it could have an impact on the health of the garden.”

He pursed his lips. “But, yeah, I guess I did tell her off for making footprints that I had to fix. That was around one on Tuesday.”

“Yeah, she brought me a flower from the garden.”

“I thought she was hiding something. Mystery solved.”

Cari set her glass on the counter. “I don’t want to see any more of these anywhere on this ship.”

“I’ve done everything possible to get rid of them, and they’ll be completely gone in less than two generations…six weeks, max. Until then, no cutting flowers, and next time someone wants one, have me do it so the plants aren’t damaged in the process.”

Cari crossed her arms. “Why did you go to all the trouble to build the garden in the first place? We already have the algae CO2 scrubbers, we have plenty of oxygen, and it takes up room that could be used for xenobiology experiments.”

“I heard you talking to Jen in the galley about how much you missed the woods. I thought maybe a little bit of home would make you happy. You seriously haven’t been to the garden yet?”

“I haven’t had the time.”

“Next time you have five minutes, just take a short walk through. Please.”

Before she could respond, a shriek came from the cabins. Jen’s voice came over the intercom. “Captain Smalls to the Ambassadorial Suite…Captain Smalls to the Ambassadorial Suite.”

“What now?” Cari groaned even as she broke into a run, Jack following close behind.

The shriek was repeated with a string of panicked pleading in a language spoken by no human tongue. Cari opened the door to the suite with her override to find a human security guard in a protective pose in front of the ambassador. The ambassador’s guards were nowhere to be seen.

The ambassador was an alien of the species humans called dracos, based on their vague semblance to dragons or reptiles. He was a foot taller than the guard, who stood in front of him, doing his best not to laugh.

“What’s going on?”

The guard took a breath and tried to maintain his composure. “The ambassador was startled by an insect. I was going to get it, but he insisted I stand guard instead.”

By this time, the ambassador had turned to face the wall, trembling in fear. The guard pointed across the room. Jack touched a flower in a vase on the shelf, made sure Cari saw him, and raised an eyebrow. From there, he looked around until he found the source of the commotion.

“There you are. Did you hitch all the way down here, you little devil?” Jack picked it up. “It’s not an insect. It’s an isopod. They don’t bite and they can’t hurt you. Nothing to fear.”

He held the creature in the palm of his hand. “See, cute, aren’t they? Like tiny little tanks.” Turning his attention back to the isopod, he said, “There’s nothing here for you to eat. Let’s get you back to the garden.”

As Jack turned to leave with the garden’s escapee, the ambassador collapsed into a heap of arms and legs, his tail wrapped tightly around. Jack knew he’d be hearing about this, for sure.

He carried the creature back to the garden and put it near the base of a plant. “Look, dead leaves for you to eat, and maybe you’ll find a mate here. Nothing for you in the quarters.”

He sent a low-priority message to the captain to meet him on the bench by the water feature in the garden. Jack figured that he could soften the blow by having her chew him out here. She hadn’t seen it yet, so maybe once she did, she’d be a little more lenient.

He sent another to his sister, letting her know how much trouble she’d caused. That done, he settled on the bench, taking in the fresh air. The garden had been a labor of love, and something to help the captain, but this would probably be the last time he’d see it like this.

Cari walked in as the lights were starting their evening dimming phase. The temperature would drop a few degrees through the “night” cycle. Everything was orchestrated to provide the plants and soil helpers the closest they could get to natural conditions in a spinning gravity.

She took a deep breath and sat next to Jack. “I….”

“Sorry, captain. I can sterilize the whole thing and clear it out.”

“No, Jack, don’t. I…the ambassador and his guards are horribly embarrassed and everyone present has signed a non-disclosure agreement, except you. You’ll find it on your desk. Do it as soon as you leave here. His chief guard was threatening suicide for her failure, but I managed to talk her down.

“So, no interplanetary incident…officially. Our security is walking the ambassador through the garden now. He wanted to see what the flowers look like on the plants. I think seeing the whatchamacallits in their environment is helping.”

“The isopods. Any idea what caused the reaction?”

“I think it might be something like humans and spiders. We’re still trying to get psychological and phobia data on the dracos without being obvious about it.” She took another deep breath, shut her eyes, and relaxed into the bench. “You did a good job. I could swear I’m by the creek behind the house.”

Jack put a hand on her shoulder. “I’m just glad you want to keep it. I’d hate to space all this.”

“I noticed butterflies when I walked in. How did you get those?”

“They must’ve come in on the trees. They were wrapped up, so any chrysalises would’ve been hidden. The sad part is, without a winter cycle, they likely won’t reproduce.”

The sound of a small squeak caught their attention. The ambassador, flanked by two ship’s security was pointing at something on the ground. Jack thought, based on the location, it might even be the same isopod that had so frightened him before.

To the ambassador’s credit, though, he managed to regain and maintain his composure. He nodded at Cari and Jack, and the guards continued with him on his tour.

“Jack,” Cari said, “thank you for this.” Her comm chimed and she looked at the message with a heavy sigh. “Even if it is a pain in the ass.”

“What now?”

“Cookie’s cat ran out of his berth chasing after a butterfly. I better go take care of it before we have a real interplanetary incident on our hands.”