The Last Human

by T F R LeBoomington

  Moon's team was widely derided around the base. It had been almost a decade since they'd had any results worth sharing. She knew aliens existed. She knew they’d been to Luna and Terra. She just didn’t know where they’d gone. And it was her job to find their cosmic address.

  Luna was always going to be the first extra-planetary base of operations for the colonisation of the stars. Humanity wanted to mine it and make it a spaceship factory long before they found the alien structure. Moon was part of the team that had discovered the base. She'd called it home since.

  They'd discovered the entrance to the base hidden in the shadows of a crater on the dark side of the Moon. It had taken her team years to break in, the first of many frustrations, only to find the base was abandoned, not one soul, not one ship. She was still optimistic then. It was all still very exciting.

  Exploration was slow, in twenty years they'd only explored a relatively small portion of the estimated structure. Many secrets still lied concealed within.

  Moon wanted to find aliens so bad. If only to say thank you. Though the occupants were gone, they had kindly left the technological treasures that helped accelerate human evolution. She wanted to meet the minds behind such genius. She’d never stop looking. She’d spend a thousand years searching the base if she had to. Maybe she could spare an afternoon for this moronic TV show. Perhaps even educate a few people. Her colleague Antor was currently attempting such a thing.

  “Colonisation of the Moon started in the late twenties. Almost immediately after the birth of the first conscious AIs. After the events of the war and purge, it was clear humans needed to spread throughout the stars.”

  “Always keep backups!” Rick’s wisecracks were unrelenting. So far they were not working on Moon. Antor was also unmoved. That annoying Gary guy kept saying it was good TV.

  “Officially Luna was abandoned in the seventies because NASA had finished its work there, and the USA had proved itself to be the leader in space exploration. The real reasons were far more interesting…”

  Rick cut off Antor with an overly sarcastic tone. “Were they now?” Gary stifled a laugh. What an idiot.

  Unfazed, Antor continued, “when the truth was released it showed that time and time again the Apollo astronauts were warned away from Luna by advanced aliens.” Back then it had really captured people’s imaginations, took their minds off the lingering memories of the purge and gave them hope in something bigger than themselves. Antor waited for Rick’s comment, but it never came, so he resumed his lecture. “Almost as soon as construction began the colonists noticed the impenetrable metal sphere below the surface. The matter displacement drill had to be invented to breach the alien doors. Though not before trying and failing with every drilling method in existence.

  “That’s what she said!” Moon shook her head. Did Antor set him up?

  “Good one Mr Archer.” No Antor what have you done? Why encourage him?

  Rick would be coming after her now. Moon just knew it. Antor signalled her. Time to talk.

  “The first thing we found when we breached the base were neatly stacked stargate kits.”

  “What they were just lying there?”

  “No, they were neatly stacked in between the entrance and what we identified as a hanger.” Moon waited a few seconds in case Rick had more on his mind. “Initially nobody knew what they were, but after a few hundred years in virtual research Luna’s brightest were able to reverse-engineer the devices and create the nanobot stargate kits.”

  They passed the kit room and found themselves in a vast hangar, devoid of any ships just like on the first day. Though, as Moon explained, tools and parts had been left behind and that had kept scientist busy. As they crossed the vast room, Antor regaled them with his theories on the alien disappearance.

  “Perhaps recent times’ most exciting and simultaneously frustrating discovery was that of alien civilisations. Or should I say traces of civilisations? It is clear this place was built by an advanced group of beings that just picked up and left one day…”

  “Just like your daddy!” Rick put on an accent that made Brock frown. Gary thought it was great though and the slightest smile appeared in the corner of Antor’s synthetic mouth before it opened to resume. Moon liked that joke least of all.

  “As I was saying, the base was empty though exceptional gifts were left behind. The stargate kits and the mutating metal used to build the base, once understood, considerably improved our capacity for space engineering. Effectively this base’s discoveries transformed us into Homo Cyberneticus Cosmicus.” Antor wasn’t done, but Rick interjected.

  “Not me! No-Homo…” Rick paused a moment, “Cyberneticus…” Rick had probably wanted to make a better joke, but halfway through it seems he got sad. Moon had not seen this expression on his face before.

  “Do not despair Mr Archer! You are most definitely Homo Cosmicus, and many ancient philosophers would argue that you are actually Cyberneticus because of your suit. The tech may not be inside of you, but it is very much a part of you.”

  Moon saw the light in Rick’s eyes, and she felt sorry for him. Suddenly and all at once she understood his plight. He was a sad man — a clown who kept no smiles for himself.

  Antor waited for Rick to say something, but when nothing came, Moon decided to pick up the lecture. “Since our ascent to space-faring species we have been sending ships to promising systems trying to find aliens and setting up colonies. Though so far no aliens have been found.” Moon stopped. Rick looked like he had a question.

  “So what happened to the aliens?” Rick asked the question because he had to. But the answer was common knowledge.

  “The running theory is that aliens left when the war started. They all abandoned their missions and returned to their respective home worlds. They probably didn't think humans would survive another big war.” Moon's eyes fell to the ground. It was so frustrating, why couldn't they wait a little longer?

  They’d reached the end of the hangar and exited through a corridor lined with rooms set up as labs. Moon led them to her office.

  Moon practically lived in that office. Her typical day involved waking up with her dog. Her only friend. They’d usually eat breakfast in her dorm room near the base. Her mornings mostly involved looking over notes and talking with her colleagues about their lack of progress. As an ancient language expert and astronomer, her job involved studying artefacts and any data that might hold answers as to where everyone had gone, as she was currently explaining to Rick and the camera bots. Progress was non-existent for her team. Moon stood by her desk. She glanced at the holopads and alien objects that cluttered it, suddenly conscious that she might appear messy on TV. Smartscreens and more artefacts of varying sizes and shapes lined the walls. This room probably looked cluttered to the uninitiated. It was in fact very well organised... To her.

  “We need to find something like a Rosetta stone.” Moon had studied hundreds of objects, and many of them seemed to have completely different sets of symbols. “So far the only thing we’ve achieved is the identification of twelve different sets of markings, twelve languages, twelve different alien species.” This had taken them many years, and she initially thought it was a decent achievement. “But we don't know much about what they’re saying...”

  “What like nothing at all?” Rick blurted the question out. He felt bad the moment he did.

  “Don't sell yourself short, Moon! Your team has identified the ON button in twelve alien languages!” Antor laughed, Moon heard laughter down the corridor. Dicks.

  Moon had become deflated about the quest for alien civilisations. Much to her annoyance Antor’s team had made giant leaps for transhumankind. His team discovered and reverse-engineered dozens of artefacts a year. And they regularly brought new items for her to analyse and catalogue. The more they explored, the more objects piled up in her lab. Adding more questions and answering none.

  Antor had started leading the group deeper in the base while regaling them with his te
am’s achievements. “Our researchers are constantly going further in the base, breaking through new doors and opening up new sections to explore. Unfortunately, no instruction manuals come attached!” Antor laughed and turned towards Moon. “Our work would be impossible without teams like Moon's. These scientists, ancient alien theorists, advanced technologists and linguistics specialists work tirelessly to help us understand these artefacts.” Moon smiled, that was nice to say, especially on TV. "It is taxing work, and sadly no discovery has matched that of the first. The discovery of the stargate kits and reverse engineering of portal technology brought about the single most important advancement. It made us into a spacefaring species.”

  “Fuck yeah!” Rick pumped his fist and bowed his head, and in a moment of, what Gary called pure TV gold, Antor did the same. Moon shook her head annoyed at how much fun they were having. This is a serious place.

  “Fuck yeah!” Antor’s synthetic voice echoed Rick’s.

  Antor had led them to the universal map room. Researchers studied a large three-dimensional interactive holomap of the known Universe. Astronomers kept the map updated with data from satellites, probes, telescopes and colonies. Moon had sworn to herself that one day she’d mark the location of an alien homeworld on that map. One day.

  Antor was still droning on, but all eyes were on the holomap. Moon had taken control and zoomed in on Terra.

  “Shortly after the colonisation of Luna and the creation of Moonland, nanobots fleets began their trips to the closest systems. The Alpha Centauri system was top of the list.” Moon pulled away from Terra so that only Solus and Alpha were visible. “Soon afterwards more nanobot fleets were sent to Tau Ceti, Wolf and every likely planet-supporting system within forty light years of Solus.”

  Moon had them mesmerised. Their eyes followed the lines that showed the fleets’ journeys through the stars. Space is really big. This map was great at showing that.

  “Billions of nanobots were assembled and programmed to re-assemble themselves as stargates upon arrival.”

  Moon brought the nanobot ships schematics just above Rick’s head. She nodded in approval at his suitably awed expression before these infinitely complex machines. Thousands of them assembled into ships no bigger than a pack of smokes. And millions of these mini ships formed great fleets that moved in unison like bird flocks through the vast emptiness. Made of a wondrous programmable metal that could shapeshift to match external conditions and absorb and produce some energy; the same mutating metal as the base and most artefacts. The ships’ diamond nuclear batteries powered onboard miniature lasers that fired almost continuously at their sapphire light sails. It was the best system until the advent of the fusion drive.

  “The first wave of nanobots was able to reach near the speed of light by the time they exited the heliosphere, in less than five years the first stargates were operational and people ventured into a new star system. Alpha.”

  Antor stopped. This bit was always a bummer. The atmosphere had been electrifying. The whole system had turned into one big party as everyone awaited first contact. Moon remembered being so excited then, the world had held its breath together. All expected the discovery of an advanced civilisation. People waiting for humanity’s children, enthused at the idea of sharing knowledge and culture. That was not to be the case. The Alpha system was not home to any civilisations. When the stargates opened for Tau Ceti, Wolf, Eridani and the Glieses’ researchers and pundits alike believed this time alien cultures would be waiting. They were not.

  “How could six systems with dozens of planets and moons between them not have civilised life on them?” It’s the question the fans would ask, or so Gary told Rick. Moon had an answer ready.

  “Many now think the alien visitors came from much farther away, too far for us to reach with current technology. The search, so far, has been conducted in places we can reach, but many say the search should focus on places mentioned by ancient civilisations." Moon drew attention to the map and zoomed in on Orion's belt. "The stars in Orion have been suggested as candidates for a mission. But distances are more than ten times greater than anything current ships have travelled. Public support for search and expansion missions has waned, people and resources are spread thin.” Gary was telling Rick it wasn’t such a great idea to end the tour on such a downer. Moon scowled at him; science is not entertainment.

  “So what’s next?” Rick and the viewers wanted some hope. Moon glanced at Antor; he would probably disappoint. Moon would give them a glimmer.

  “We continue our work and hope for a breakthrough.” Rick was overtly disappointed with that answer. “Technology is advancing rapidly. We will find them eventually. I am sure of this.” That was as positive a note as they’d get from her.

  Third Time Lucky

  Luna Park was fun, but not that fun. Rick was disappointed. Many of the rides delivered an inferior rush because of the diminished gravity. Apart from the catapult. Getting flung into space inside that tiny sphere had been exhilarating even if the way down was less intense. The bouncing castle maze and assault courses looked like fun at first, but the laughing children infestation put a damper on the experience. Rick had realised too late that every surface was sticky with child filth, a composite of burst sugary bubbles, chocolate-like smears and dribble coated every surface of this otherwise fun experience. Rick soldiered on through the sticky bouncing children hellscape, crushing children under his weight every time he fell was the highlight of the experience.

  Once that ordeal was cleared he was apprehensive about any more rides, but Gary had insisted they make the most of the theme park. The viewers wanted to see more. Fucking Gary. Rick put his armoured suit back on and pleaded with Gary.

  “Mate, do we really have to go on with this crap?” Gary frowned. The cameras were rolling, and Luna Park was an Agency client. Rick didn’t care. “I’m not taking the suit off anymore.”

  “I don't know what was in your food today, but you need to chill the fuck out.” Gary’s tone surprised Rick. “We have work to do, and you’re the one who wanted Luna Park in the first place.”

  “I didn’t think there would be so many children...” The problem was not the park.

  “What did you expect mate? It’s a fucking theme park!” Gary seemed relaxed.

  “Yeah, but I thought it was an adult theme park, kinda like Paris.”

  “Why would you think that? What’s wrong with you?” They were all laughing at him now. This is why people loved the show. He simply couldn't escape his fate.

  “I thought the Moon only had scientists and soldiers on it.” Rick thought his logic was sound.

  “And they can’t have children? And what about tourists?” Rick felt stupid. “Let’s just do the buggy safari to the original Moon landing spot. Then we’ll call it. Fair?”

  Rick begrudgingly accepted the deal, and they did the safari. On the upside, there were no children in sight. Probably because the ride was boring, if they’d just let the buggies go a little faster it could have been fun. But they didn’t. So it wasn’t. The original Moon landing spot was unchanged since sixty-nine and was underwhelming as Rick had iterated several times. Gary must have agreed because he didn’t make them linger in the park after that.

  Rick sat at the front of the train on the ride back to the city and it was a better rush than any of the shitty rides in the park. He would need to get slightly drunk now, to aid with the assimilation of his second day in space. This time the camera bots would follow him. As would Gary, he had said so several times on the train to make sure it was clear to Rick. It’s fucking clear dickhead.

  ◆◆◆

  Back in the crowded streets of Luna city Rick followed Amy, and the others followed Rick. The Moonland shoot was pretty much done, tomorrow they’d board the Solus Express to Mars. The camera bots had a little more b roll to capture, and they could do so while the team wandered the city looking for a drinking hole. The group entered one of the city’s busy plazas, and Amy and Mr T floated on a
head to find a suitable bar before an increasingly frustrated Rick went on one of his rants, then he spotted Moongirl in the crowd. She was walking towards them with the dog in tow. His heart lifted the moment he saw her. Third time lucky. She seemed deep in thought and didn’t notice Rick approach her.

  “Good evening, Moon!” Rick tried a little bow to add to his humorous charm. She snapped out of her musings startled.

  “Oh! Hey, sorry didn’t see you.” Moondog came up to Rick begging for attention. Rick wished Moongirl was a bit more like Moondog. Though maybe it’d be weird if Moongirl walked up to him and started licking his hand. Maybe.

  “I’m so glad we bumped into you! I didn’t get a chance to thank you earlier. I really enjoyed the tour of the base. It was a childhood dream come true.” Rick was genuine, but his smarmy reputation probably ruined his attempts at being earnest.

  “Just doing my job.” If there was a vaccine for Rick’s charm, Moon had taken it.

  The conversation was not going very well. The awkwardness was palpable, and any minute now Gary would intervene. Then Pete ran into the background. Moondog perked up, and his body went rigid. Moon pointed in Pete’s direction. “Wasn’t that guy on your show?”

  Pete seemed to be in a hurry. Rick looked at Brock. He knew that face, that was the “oh shit face”. Pete was pushing past the crowd when he noticed them. It was hard not to see Brock. He towered above most people, and his green Mohawk was famous. Pete made a beeline for them. He was carrying a backpack that he unshouldered and held against his chest as he body-slammed anyone in his way. Gary and everyone else in the area had now noticed the commotion. Pissed-off people were picking themselves up off the ground and turning to shout abuse at Pete who powered through the crowd towards Brock. The cameras were rolling and were about to capture Pete make contact. Not good.