Discovery (Terran Chronicles)

by Jackson, James

  John ferries the first group of volunteers down to the proposed base site. The rear of the transport is packed with twenty people and their various tools. Saws, hammers, shovels, and more are all stacked or packed away. Patrick, sitting next to John, considers his task as the work crew’s boss. Having no plans to work from, and little construction experience, has him feeling quite apprehensive.

  Three days later the construction team has expanded to seventy-five people. Jeremiah finally rejoins Patrick, he had been keeping a low profile after his friends died. Patrick can see that his eyes are still pretty lifeless, but at least he is trying to join in and help. Tall strong walls made from the nearby trees surround eleven wooden dwellings of various sizes. A huge central fire pit rages each night. Few animals have been spotted in the forest, and fewer still on the plains. A number of bird-like creatures exist, as do a few multi-limbed tree climbing critters. The limited variety of life found defies the complex ecology, which is baffling the planetologists.

  Emma retires to the camp site after another exhaustive day in the forest. She stops dead in her tracks at the sight before her. A massive buffalo carcass has been skewered and slowly rotates over a smoldering fire. Knives, forks, and plates give testimony to the feast that has been had this night. Her mind races through all of the things that could happen from eating the meat of these beasts. As she slices a few pieces off a voice hollers out.

  “Hey, those things taste great.”

  Emma shudders in disgust, the slices are for her to analyze not to eat. She does not plan to eat anything from this planet until it’s gone through a complete battery of tests, and maybe not even then.

  The days roll quickly by as the three planetologists and crew alike find plenty to keep themselves occupied. Those that do not wish to go to the planet are kept very busy as well, either assisting with cataloging or conducting minor repairs to some of the deck plates. The maintenance crews have found that some of the welds joining the Gamin decking to those installed on Earth are breaking apart.

  Cindy flops down in her command chair. The bridge is rather quiet these days, Joe being her only companion, even their guard temporarily absent. She reads through the long list of repairs conducted, systems modified, and the continuing issue of minor thefts. Sighing she sits back to gaze at the planet before them.

  “What names are currently in the lead?” she asks absentmindedly.

  Joe has been following the nominations and voting with earnest. “New Earth, Eden, Buffalo, and Newland are the short list of names.”

  Cindy shakes her head. “That’s the best the crew could come up with? We’re over fifteen hundred light years from Earth, and that’s the list?”

  Joe is saved from having to reply by the arrival of Akira. He looks around as though confused for a moment then gives Cindy and Joe a silent wave before sitting down to guard the entryway.

  Cindy looks up at the planet and stares at the horizon, watching as the sun rise turns night into day for those below.

  Location:

  Base Camp

  Unnamed World

  Brian, a member of the ground crew, wakes up and yawns, then looks out through the opening in the wall that passes for a window. The early morning rays of the sun are just striking the ground through a thin layer of mist. He yawns one more time as he wonders what name this planet will be given by the crew. A half filled glass rests on the nearby table, the water within dancing a little. Brian stares at the water for a moment, the oddity being missed until he hears the distant thunder. Stepping out of his makeshift bed, he can feel the ground vibrating. The water dances more wildly, splashing about as though angry at being confined. Others in the room are stirring now. Making his way outside, he spots a distant haze, but it’s not like the light morning mist they are used to seeing. Once he steps from the building and onto the ground the vibrations are more pronounced.

  “Hey! Everyone get up,” he hollers loudly.

  Patrick sluggishly wakes at the sound, but feeling the ground shaking instantly makes him alert. Running to the main gate, he peers through the gap and off into the distance. Squinting he tries to make sense of the dusty visage. Someone presses a pair of binoculars into his hand. No sooner does he put them to his eyes than his jaw drops.

  “Oh shit, we need da shuttle here, NOW!”

  Lifting the binoculars up again his mouth goes a little dry. It’s not the dust cloud that bothers him, nor the hundreds if not thousands of buffalo type beasts that are creating the cloud as they flee. It is the pack of large beasts that follow the herd. They look like a cross between a mountain lion and a wolf on steroids. Long teeth filled snouts and thick fur cover these beasts from head to toe. What stuns him most is their size and agility. They are much larger than the beasts they chase, and run in leaping motions. He looks up at the wall they have constructed and gulps. Too short, damn it! Running his gaze across every building greatly adds to his anxiety. They all have large openings for windows.

  “People we need to secure at least one building, and now. I don’t care what we have to strip down. We need to seal up those gaps, and fast.”

  Saws and hammers quickly find hands as everyone picks up the urgency in his voice. Looking once again at the thundering herd, Patrick feels very uneasy, they are coming this way, and fast.

  Planks are quickly stripped from a number of dwellings and hastily nailed to the outside of the openings of the one building that could hold them all. Emma and her team moves their equipment into this retreat, much to the annoyance of those working around them.

  The vibrations through the ground are becoming more pronounced, as is the noise from the thousands of hooves striking the ground. Patrick watches as some of the buffalo make it to the river. The wolf-cats do not follow, but instead chase those that do not cross, bringing them ever closer. Scanning the path behind the herd reveals a flattened path of destruction. In the midst of this churned up path are the carcasses of the fallen. Swinging his binoculars back he is just in time to watch as one of the herd falls to a volley of claws and teeth. The fallen beast once motionless, is left behind as the creatures responsible race to rejoin the pack. They kill them for later, oh no. Another great swath of buffalo cross the water leaving scant few on the same side as the base camp. They are close enough to be viewed by the naked eye now.

  One of the men is rapidly adding planks to the roof when he spots the onrushing creatures. The sight stops him, his hands and feet go cold as blood rushes away from his extremities. His senses seem to come alive while at the same time his bowels want to give way. He practically falls off the roof in his haste to get inside. Once there, he stares at the doorway gibbering incoherently.

  Patrick stays resolute and observes the spectacle before him until the very last minute. Finally he gives the order they have been waiting for.

  “OK, everyone inside, quickly.”

  As Patrick runs to the building he spots a fuel can just as one of the walls surrounding the camp is struck by a heavy beast, then another. In their panic, the herd is blindly running into the walls. Patrick splashes the fuel on the ground between the main building and the oncoming threat. The sound of a large creature landing on the ground makes him look up. The wolf-cat comes to rest some twenty paces away. It turns and makes eye contact with Patrick. Perhaps due to the surprise of seeing a new creature, or the strange smells in the camp. Whatever the case, the beast stops and stares giving Patrick the precious seconds he needs to light the fuel then run inside.

  Jeremiah slams the door shut right behind his friend Patrick who quickly assess the room. More than seventy people crowd the building, they all look rather scared.

  “Geeze those creatures are fast and agile.” With adrenaline coursing through his veins Patrick leans against the door catching his breath. “Oh damn. Quick, nail the door shut.” They have no need for locks in the base camp, thus the door is held shut with a simple latch.

  A low growling sound from outside chills even the hardiest of men. Emma is sitting
on one of her equipment boxes, breathing in short wheezing gasps.

  Thud.

  All eyes look upward as the roof creaks and groans at the unexpected burden. The beast starts to scratch at the roof, its huge claws almost peeling away the planks.

  A snort at one of the covered windows shocks those nearest to it. This time an inquisitive claw filled paw finds purchase, shredding a plank completely away. Its face swings back and forth, large green eyes peer inside.

  Patrick again galvanizes those around him into action.

  “Seal that hole, fast.”

  Hammers and saws again swing into action as planks are added to the inside of the window area. As each new plank is added to the inside, the wolf-cat shreds another from the outside. The race is on to see who will be victorious. The creature’s head is more than twice the size of a mountain lions, and filled with long sharp teeth. Though it makes fast work of the planks, it needs to remove quite a few before it can attempt to enter. But attempt it does, much to the surprise of those not quite finished securing the inside. Planks suddenly splinter in all directions as the wolf-cat pushes its head inside. It then pulls its head out from the hole it has created, carrying in its jaws a struggling man. The bloodied planks are either pushed in or splintered during the creature’s attack.

  The creature bites down, its long teeth sinking in, killing the hapless man. It tosses the lifeless man to one side then looks once more at the hole in the wall. Just as the creature makes to lunge in, it stops. It’s ears stand up, swivel left then right, suddenly it is gone.

  Seconds later the shuttle lands in the base camp, and from its open ramp pours out a most deadly force. Six elite soldiers in full combat gear are flanked by two suit wearing men, they secure a small perimeter around the shuttle’s opening.

  Radclyf’s voice is loud and clear.

  “Send thirty people out, no gear or equipment. NOW.”

  Patrick pries open the door and quickly indicates the thirty people that are to go.

  “Let’s patch that hole in case those things come back.” He adds as he looks at the quick work the creature made of their earlier attempt to cover the window.

  Emma stands defiant, hands on hips.

  “I am not leaving my equipment behind.”

  Patrick is not used to dealing with impetuous people. His response stuns her.

  “OK, you stay then.” He points to another man who hurriedly joins those on the shuttle.

  Emma opens her mouth to speak but is too stunned to respond. Within minutes the shuttle is loaded. It takes off and circles the base camp a few times before fading away into the distance. Radclyf and Hayato assign their teams while Olaf and George assist with reinforcing the building. Emma sits on a crate, dumbfounded.

  The roar of gunfire fills the air as one of the soldiers fires a sustained burst. The wolf-cats come again and again, but each time they retreat from the noisy gunfire. Fortunately, the team does not have to kill any of the creatures.

  The shuttle returns twice more, until finally everyone has been evacuated from the base camp. Cindy is most relieved that there were not more casualties as she looks at the brief report before her. The deceased man worked for the services department and had been examining the planet’s water quality.

  Emma goes over his documentation, not wanting his death to be in vain. She finds solace in the fact that not only are his reports quite concise, the planet’s water is safe to drink. Her heartfelt proposal is endorsed by all, thus the river by the camp site is named the Louis River System.

  Cindy is unwilling to give up on such an amazing planet, and commissions the entire crew to finding an answer to their dilemma.

  Two days later, Emma’s team comes up with a solution which George has the dubious task of testing. John pilots the shuttle, taking them in low over the base camp, then they follow the torn up plains all the way to the arid hills. Still farther they travel, until finally they come to a rocky area inundated with caves. Landing in a dusty clearing George steps outside, his body suit showing tarnish marks where the sunlight fails to glint and glean. Placing Emma’s package upright upon the ground, he then retreats back into the shuttle. John flies them to a nearby hill where he lands, then powers everything down. George leaves his suit in the rear of the shuttle and joins John up front where they wait. It does not take long before the wolf-cats exit their caves and start sniffing the strange object. Some snarl at the strange smells, another swipes at it. The package topples over with a small thump. Immediately the wolf-cats flee, and though they quickly recover and return, none get close to the package. Instead they circle around it maintaining a respectful distance. John and George high five each other. The next stage of the test is a going to be little riskier though.

  George stares at the retreating shuttle that now carries the package Emma had given them. His gloved hand holds a small replica of the sonic device. When it is switched on, the sound it emits is beyond the range of human hearing. Though he knows the suit is very tough, he feels quite alone right now. The wolf-cats return, this time they hiss as they warily approach. George gulps when one jumps and lands a mere fifteen steps away. They are huge. He looks at the small box one more time, then activates it. The animals back away shaking their heads, hissing. They quickly seem to find a distance that borders between their desire to get to him and their discomfort. This distance seems to exceed how far they can jump, which allows George to relax a little. A group of seven animals now pace around and around, shaking their heads in discomfort from time to time. They snarl as each finds a radius that suits them, some closer than others. More join the pack until George is now totally surrounded by dozens of snarling wolf-cats. He gulps as he performs one more test, he walks toward them. He is relieved to see them keep their distance. Those in front either back away, or move to the sides. Those behind creep in, but always maintain a respectful distance. Eventually, some of the wolf-cats lose interest and depart, snarling menacingly as they go. Finally George is alone, the final test is complete. They do give up. He takes a deep breath and finally relaxes a little. He was not entirely sure the suit would protect him.

  Location:

  Starship Terran

  Planetary Orbit

  A long way from home

  Emma and Cindy are elated at the successful test. The crew of the Terran works long and hard to fabricate dozens of ‘sonic resonators’ as they have been dubbed. By the end of the week the base camp has a number of these installed providing overlapping fields of influence. Each unit comes with its own solar panel and battery backup. Mass production of the hand held units is also a major priority.

  Cindy reads a readiness report on the devices then calls Emma and Patrick to the bridge. Once they arrive, she begins her carefully planned speech.

  “I wish to continue researching this planet, but I have a few questions first. How did you come to find a solution to the wolf-cats so quickly?”

  Emma smiles. “It was easy really. I was recording everything in the forest and had been studying some unusual sounds that the tree climbing creatures emit. I put it all together a few days later when I was observing pictures of the entire area.”

  Cindy frowns as she fails to see the connection. “Go on.”

  “Well, those mounds we saw all shows signs of being made by some ant like insect. As the days went by, mounds started appearing around the rotting remains of the fallen buffalo. These underground insects break down everything the wolf-cats leave behind, bones and all.”

  Cindy’s surprised voice chimes in. “There are mounds everywhere.”

  “Yes, but not in the forest, nor are there large animal droppings in the forest.” Emma beams with pride at her discoveries.

  “Well,” Cindy continues, “that leaves but one question for the two of you. Do we go back down?”

  Emma can’t contain herself. “Of course we do.” She turns to Patrick for support.

  “I am not so sure.” Patrick intones, his voice deadpan. However, his hazel colored eyes
sparkle energetically giving away his true feelings.

  Emma thumps him playfully, causing Cindy to smile even more. We’re all becoming a team now.

  Cindy touches her armchair’s panel.

  “All hands listen up. We will be resuming our studies of the planet below, which incidentally has been named New Earth.”

  She looks back at the pair and shakes her head. “I have to stop letting crew polls dictate these names.”

  Chuckles and laughter fill the bridge.

  The next two weeks are mostly uneventful as Emma’s team continues their research aided by quite a few volunteers. Eventually though, it is time to leave. Even Emma and her team concedes that once again, they have found a planet that could keep them busy for years.

  Chapter Four - It’s a Long Way to Tipperyary

  Having explored a number of star systems and finding not one, but two that are habitable, the crew of the Terran is quite elated. Cindy sits in her command chair feeling very pleased with their discoveries.

  “John, get ready take us home. It’s time to report our findings.” She fiddles with her chair’s controls for a moment before finally tapping the ship wide communications symbol.

  “Attention all crew. Our mission has been a resounding success. heading home.”

  While Cindy is relaying the happy news to the crew, Andrew is busy calculating the trajectory for their trip. Each time they use the main engines they all get more familiar with their ship’s capabilities and limitations. He feeds the plotted course into the navigational system. John transfers this data to his console, then using the ship’s thrusters he aligns the Terran with the plotted course. They have performed this maneuver a few times now, and gain confidence with each successful attempt.

  John checks his controls once more, then gives Cindy a thumbs up.

  Seated behind him, she smiles at her crew. They are getting more efficient each time we do this. Her usual cry sounds out.