Prelude to Extinction

by Andreas Karpf

  Chapter 10 – July 14, 2124

  Jack settled into his chair at the oval conference table and looked across at Palmer and Don – the only others in the silent room. Each was fully engrossed in their work, giving him a chance to clear his mind. Exhaustion took hold, though, and made him acutely aware that this was the first chance he’d had to sit down in the past six hours. It felt good. As quickly as his body recognized its need for rest, his mind overrode it. There wasn’t any time for this. Their frantic work since deceleration only resulted in achieving a semi-stable position around Epsilon Eri-D and its mysterious, massive companion. He drew a deep breath; part of him regretted that his break would end now by his own doing when he started the briefing. “Gentlemen, shall we begin?”

  Don looked up quickly and responded, “OK, well I’ve had the entire science staff working on trying to understand what this object is. We’ve done comprehensive observations across the entire E-M spectrum, radar scans and gravitational mapping, and unfortunately don’t have much yet. The best that I can do for now is show you our latest images, and give you some rudimentary data on the object.” He pressed a small indicator on his computer panel. The lights dimmed and a hologram appeared above the center of the table. Jack had seen two preliminary, low-resolution images earlier in the day, but this was much sharper, and was stunning in its simplicity. Floating in front of him was a short, thick, polished, metal tube flanked by two loops of silver. Their centers were aligned along a common axis, their curved surfaces were completely featureless and perfectly reflective. Each was separated from the other by a distance that was a few times its diameter. The image rotated in front of him, and he could see the background stars showing through the centers of the outer rings. The tube though seemed opaque; its center looked solid and pitch black. Their plain forms prevented him from gaining any feeling of their true size or nature.

  Don continued, “What we’ve determined so far defies logic. First, as we already know, it is located in Lagrange point two, our original target location. Actually it’s not truly a Lagrange point anymore since the mass of the object has actually changed the dynamics of the entire system, but it is a rough equivalent to L-2; we can get into that later. The structure is large. The outer rings are located one-hundred kilometers away from either side of the center tube, and each is twenty-five kilometers in diameter. Even on close inspection with our on-board telescopes, they show no discernable surface features – just perfectly smooth, reflective metal. The outer rings are massive, but nothing unexpected for their size. Each is about ten-to-the-seventeenth kilograms, or about the mass of a small asteroid.

  “The center one is...” Don drew a deep breath, before continuing, “I don’t know. It’s just damned impossible.”

  Palmer barely let a second pass before he asked impatiently, “What’re you talking about?”

  “It too is twenty-five kilometers in diameter and it’s about twenty-five kilometers long – basically a little bigger than New York City. But, that’s not the problem. Its mass reads as nearly five-percent of an Earth mass; we’re talking over four times the mass of the Moon. That’s tens of thousands of times more massive than anything that size has any right to be.”

  Jack stared at the surreal tube and asked, “Are you sure?”

  “Yes. Positive,” he answered. “That’s what wrecked our approach here. The L-2 point you know is a balance point between gravitational fields of E-Eri-D and its parent star E-Eri...”

  “Yes…yes, go on,” Jack said.

  “Well, this thing’s sitting right in it. More importantly, its seemed to have created a gravitational well collecting all sorts of debris into this region of space. The presence of the debris is what forced our course change. The object’s so massive that as we began adjusting our approach for our originally planned orbit, we started falling towards it. The mass was easy to calculate by the rate it was pulling us in.”

  “What the hell’s it made of?” Jack asked.

  “It’s impossible to say.” Don answered. “If it’s actually a hollow cylinder, then its density would exceed that of a white dwarf star and start approaching the type of matter found in collapsed stellar remnants like neutron stars.”

  Palmer raised a finger and opened his mouth to ask a question, but Don presumed he knew what was coming, and preemptively answered, “When our sun dies, it’ll basically run out of fuel and leave behind an extremely dense core – that’s a white dwarf. It’s a hundred-thousand times denser than lead. When a much larger star goes supernova, the force of the explosion can compact the core into a neutron star or possibly even a black hole. So, imagine the mass of our entire sun, packed into something the size of New York City. That’s how dense a neutron star is. In this case, the cylinder’s matter is hundreds of times denser than a white dwarf and is starting to approach that of a neutron star – well beyond any natural material known to man. Hell, our theories can’t even explain how this can even exist!”

  “That’s not what I was going to ask,” Palmer said calmly. “Are you sure about these measurements?”

  “Of course! I didn’t believe it the first two times we got the readings. It took two more for the meaning of all this to sink in. It’s amazing ... I mean whoever built this can engineer planetary masses. Think of what we can learn from them.”

  “I think it’s a little early to talk about making contact,” Palmer said. “In fact, the prudent course of action would be to back off a bit.”

  “What the hell are you talking about? This is more than I could’ve dreamed of.”

  “Don’t you understand?” Palmer shot back forcefully. “By your own estimation, the civilization that created this can engineer matter that nature can only make via the explosion of a large star. We’re nothing compared to them. We’ve got to move off before we’re spotted and ...”

  “You idiot,” Don sneered. “If they can build that, they probably knew we were coming before we even got past Mars back home.”

  “Enough!” Jack said. “We’re not going to have any of this crap. Palmer, if they’re even still around, they know we’re here; that’s a safe assumption. Don, let’s not jump the gun. Let’s just figure this out and take it one step at a time.”

  There was a short pause before Palmer calmly said, “OK, then. What does it do?”

  Don threw his hands in the air and said, “I haven’t the slightest idea.”

  The room stayed silent as they studied the image. Jack found himself feeling a strange combination of awe and frustration – the same frustration he felt on A832. Don was right; this was beyond anything they could have hoped for. Evidence of a civilization far, far more advanced than humanity. The problem was, it was so much more advanced that he couldn’t even fathom what any of it was. Of course there would be time to investigate, but right now his gut was filled with a loathsome feeling of helplessness. “Are there any signs of energy or any sort of activity?”

  “No power. At least nothing we can recognize. Our radar scans of the central tube did show something else unusual though. It might be spinning – spinning very fast.”

  “You can’t tell?” Palmer asked.

  “There aren’t any surface features to watch go round. We just saw a very strange distortion of the radar echoes. Rapid rotation is the most likely explanation. More observations will tell us for sure.”

  “What else do you have?” Jack asked.

  “Nothing more on the object, but we’ve already found some structures on the planet.”

  The holographic display changed to an orbital view of Epsilon Eri-D’s western hemisphere. The southern half was dominated by a deep cerulean ocean speckled with bright white cloud systems. In the north was a large, beige, continental mass bearing a strange resemblance to Australia. Its eastern edge, however, tapered off into a chain of large islands that eventually curved southward and back on themselves, forming an equatorial sea reminding him of the Caribbean.

  “We found what appears to be a city right about here.”
Don said. On cue, a red circle appeared in the eastern extremity of a peninsula leading to the island chain. “I’ll magnify as much as I can, but remember that we’re still four million kilometers out: About ten Earth-Moon distances. Our resolution will be limited to about a hundred meters.”

  The image zoomed in to show an aerial view of a tropical coast line. The interior was a rich, dark green from lush vegetation. A thin, white line of sandy beaches separated the forest from the surrounding shallow, teal waters. Away from the coast, the waters changed to the deep blue of an open ocean. Jack scanned the forested landscape for Don’s “city.” Not far inland he spotted a single gray structure, maybe the size of a golf ball on this scale. It was surrounded by a mottled black and gray ring which he assumed to be smaller buildings. Leading radially outward in several locations were hints of straight lines that cut into the vegetation before fading away. Maybe roads – he wasn’t sure.

  Don continued, “The central structure is a single dome about fifteen kilometers in diameter and maybe two kilometers tall at its peak. It’s surrounded by what we believe are buildings, but at this resolution we can’t be sure. I’m hesitant to say this, but our best image enhancements suggest that these may well be in ruins. However, I’m not really convinced of that considering that the Dome itself is intact. In any event, we’ll know for sure once we’re closer. The radial lines may be roadways or some sort of transportation track. There are no signs of power, transmissions or any other activity.”

  “Are there any other structures? Smaller ones elsewhere?” Palmer asked.

  “Nothing big enough for us to see at this distance. But, there is another continental mass that we haven’t examined in detail yet. It’ll rotate into view in about four hours.”

  Don continued with his description of the planet, but Jack only half-listened. Part of him wanted to know everything possible about this new world, but there were too many other things battling within him for attention. Most important was their recovery from the emergency deceleration. Not all of the damage reports were in, and he still needed to check on the injured. It appeared they had gotten lucky – there were only four injuries, with Janet being the most serious. Equally important was determining where to park the Magellan. An orbiting debris field and the alien object precluded keeping the ship in a close orbit. Plus, they still had to further stabilize their current position, not to mention a dozen other tasks that needed attention.

  Don stopped talking and Jack reflexively answered, “Thanks Don.” The scientist’s perplexed look made him think that either he’d been expected to answer some question he hadn’t heard, or that Don wanted to continue. It only took a split second to determine that whatever it was, it didn’t matter. “Do we have any updated injury reports?” Jack asked.

  “Nothing yet sir,” Palmer replied.

  “Damn it, what do you mean? It’s been over four hours since her last update.” He activated the comm and said, “Helena, respond please.”

  As he waited for an answer, he calmed himself and spoke again to Palmer. “We’ll go over the Magellan’s orbital position and damage reports in a minute.”

  “Actually,” Palmer said, “we only took minor damage. And, nothing at all to our main systems.”

  “Good. We can...”

  “Jack, Helena here.”

  “Yes, is there any update on your patients?”

  “I was going buzz you in a few minutes with it anyway, but now’s just as good. Kurt’s basically OK. I’ve confirmed that his concussion was very minor. I just gave him the go-ahead to return to duty. Also, I finished checking out Claire and Masako. Nothing broken – all they had were some bruises from falling equipment...”

  “And Janet?”

  “She’s another story, Jack. She’s not in good shape. She sustained a skull fracture, several other broken bones, her left lung was punctured and she’s in a light coma. It took some work, but I’ve stabilized her for now.”

  “Shit,” Jack said under his breath. “Beyond stabilizing her, what do you think?”

  “There are some complications due to our situation. Because we’re at zero-g, I’ve been having trouble removing fluid from her lungs. Plus, I had to put her in a pressurized suit to get better control of her blood flow. I don’t think we’re going to lose her. But with the coma, I don’t know what sort of neurological damage we’re dealing with. I’ll do my best, but I just can’t promise anything. I’ll keep you informed of any developments.”

  “Thanks Helena.”

  The idea of losing one of his crew ate at him. Of course he knew that there would be fatalities on a thirty-year mission like this. But not like this; not so early. Helena’s confidence about Janet surviving didn’t matter: permanent brain damage was nearly the same as death. He tried to pull himself away from exploring the morbid possibilities but couldn’t. The crew was his responsibility. There should have been some way to see this coming – to see the object at L-2 in advance and avoid the maneuver.

  He forced his mind back to the present and noticed that the others were waiting for him to speak. “OK, Palmer did you finish an orbital analysis with Devon?”

  “Yes,” his first officer answered. “As you know, the main problem is that presence of this alien object has changed the gravitational nature of this system. In short, it’s occupying what was L-2 and has destabilized the positions near here. Basically, if we tried to orbit in this region, we’d have to run engines periodically to correct for gravitational influences from the object. Normally, that wouldn’t be a big problem except for the fact that the Magellan isn’t designed for periodic small maneuvers. So parking it here is impractical. Further in toward Epsilon Eri-D are several stable regions where we might consider orbiting. But, there is an extended debris field that occupies that region of space. The risk of impact from some random piece of material is relatively small. However, the consequences of what would happen if it pierced one of the antimatter tanks would be catastrophic. That rules out orbiting the Magellan there.”

  “So where does that leave us?” Don asked.

  Palmer ignored him and looked directly at Jack as he continued, “At this point, I recommend parking the Magellan in a planet trailing orbit at a distance of about ten million kilometers. There is one drawback to this. The Magellan will be too far from Epsilon Eri-D for repeated trips using the IPV – we’d run out of propellant too quickly.”

  “So the Magellan would be stable,” Jack said, “but we’d have to transfer the crew to the IPV a few weeks early – before we’ve found a suitable location for base of operations on the surface.”

  “That is correct,” Palmer replied. “We would still travel back to the Magellan periodically for supplies – maybe every ten days or so. And, of course we’d maintain a data link to its communications and computational resources.”

  Jack looked to Don who was nodding silently in agreement. The idea was sensible. He swiped at the comm. button and called, “Helena, are you still there?”

  “Here, Jack.”

  “It looks like we’re going to have to move up our timetable and begin moving to the IPV now. No one will be staying behind on the Magellan. Can you move Janet?”

  “I’d rather not.”

  “How long do you need before we can move her?”

  “It’s not a matter of how long. While she’s in the coma I’d rather keep her here.”

  “How long are we talking here: days or weeks?”

  “As long as it takes,” she answered calmly.

  Don spoke up, “Are we talking about putting the whole mission on hold while...” He stopped when Jack raised his hand to him. “Helena,” Jack continued, “will there be any risk to moving her to the IPV?”

  “Jack, I’d feel more comfortable...”

  “This is not a matter of comfort. The bottom line is that we can’t move the crew onto the IPV without our primary doctor. That means in order for the mission to continue, we’re going to have to move her. The only thing that’ll keep me from d
oing this is if you tell me that the move will endanger her. Are you telling me this?”

  There was a short moment of silence before Helena answered, “No. The sick bay on the IPV will be adequate, and if we’re careful the move won’t hurt her.”

  “Good. Let me know if you need anything at all.”

  Jack abruptly disconnected the comm. and turned back to Palmer. “I’m going to have Kurt coordinate the move along with all of the supplies. I want you to work with Devon and finish plotting the orbit for Magellan. Also, get a parking orbit mapped out for the IPV. We’ll plan on staying in orbit for at least a couple of weeks while we run reconnaissance missions with the shuttles.”

  “Yes sir,” Palmer answered.

  “Don,” Jack said, “You and I are going to review all of the planetary data we have so far. I want to get a good picture of what to expect before I take a team down for our first landing.”

  Jack looked back over to Don who was staring intensely at his display, and said, “Don?”

  Don looked puzzled for a moment, and then replied, “Yeah…that sounds fine.” His voice trailed off as he looked back down at his display.

  “OK, let’s proceed,” Jack said.

  Palmer left the room as Jack pushed his way across to Don’s chair. Don was staring at a set of charts on his terminal. Jack gave him a moment before asking, “Any problem?”

  “No, actually everything looks good. I’m just reviewing our latest measurements of Epsilon Eri-D’s atmosphere. It’s as all of our long-range spectra said – nearly a carbon-copy of Earth. Just a little less Oxygen and a little more Carbon Dioxide and Nitrogen; but nothing that would stop us from breathing it.”

  “So, what’s the problem?”

  “Well, it looks like a perfectly good planet. It’s just ... I don’t know.”

  “What aren’t you telling me?” Jack asked, deliberately keeping any hint of impatience out of his voice.

  “Nothing.”

  “That’s not true, now explain. Or should I assume that you weren’t telling us the whole truth about the image of that city.”