The Dave Brewster Series

by Karl Morgan

  Bill Brewster felt the sunlight on his face and opened his eyes. Out the window he could see a light snow flurry and the trees in the park, glistening with their fresh covering of snow. He rolled over and looked at Loni Arrak, still sleeping with the bed covers pulled up to her chin. He leaned over and kissed her cheek. When she did not wake up, he climbed out of bed, slipped on a robe and went to the window. He could see dozens of workers raising three flags on each of the line of flag poles in front of the High Council Building. At the top was the standard for the Society of Humanity, followed by the flags for the Zu culture and Aranar Zu itself. As he watched, Loni came up from behind and put her arms around Bill, nestling her face into his back.

  “Good morning, sleepy head,” Bill said as he turned and kissed her.

  Loni yawned. “It’s going to be a long day, Billy. I’m so glad that you are here to go through it with me.”

  “Your planet is awesome, Loni. The one thing I’ve learned since jumping from the twenty-first is that every day holds something new. And the last few days with you have been the most amazing of all,” he replied.

  “Thanks, Billy,” she said. “I need to ask you a big favor, and I’m afraid you might get upset about it.”

  “Just ask, Loni,” he said. “I’m sure it’s no big deal.”

  Loni held both of Bill’s hands. “Can we please keep our relationship from my family for right now? We’ve only known each other a few days, so who knows what can happen in the future? I don’t think my parents will understand.”

  “Okay, that’s fine with me,” Bill replied. “I’m not sure why, but if that’s what you want, I won’t say a word.”

  “I want you to understand, Billy. Come over here,” Loni continued as they walked to the couch and sat down. “Life in the Society has evolved over time. When humans evolved on Non-Ti billions of years ago, the society was very small. Over time, the numbers grew and people expanded all over the planet, much like they did on Earth 47. Within a few hundred generations, dozens of races evolved to best survive in their regions.”

  “That does sound a lot like Earth,” Bill replied. “There were many races in the twenty-first that seem to have blended together by the thirty-second. There was tension and violence among them for a very long time.”

  Loni smiled, “It shouldn’t be surprising that our worlds evolved similarly. We are all human after all. By the time we reached into the stars, our society had become more homogenous again. But just like with early humanity, the climates and conditions on the new colonies were also quite different. By the time the Society reached one thousand worlds, fifty different species had evolved to survive on that many different classes of planets.”

  “Like the Zu, for example,” Bill said. “I suppose that was to be expected.”

  “Expanding life expectancies led to rapid population growth. We needed to find more planets to give everyone a home and a job. We never found more than fifty types of inhabitable planets though. After many failed attempts to bring wide groups of races to new planets, like on Earth 47, it was decided the races best suited to a planet would get the new one. When Aranar was located, the Society found its climate was best suited for the Zu culture. That’s why it’s a Zu planet,” Loni explained.

  Bill replied, “So, humanity reverted to separate races in order to optimize expansion. It is totally logical, but a little cold and sterile.”

  “We all know that too, Billy,” she said. “There are no laws against interracial marriages, but the societal norms are very strong. After a few hundred generations of Zu only marrying Zu, any other marriage seems unnatural to some. My parents are very traditional and proud Zu.”

  “Loni, I think you are the most wonderful and beautiful woman I have ever met,” Bill replied as he kissed her again. “But as you said, we have only known each other a few days. The last thing I want to do is cause a panic in the Arrak family now. If some day we decide to have a permanent relationship, we can cross that bridge then.”

  “Oh, Billy, thank you for understanding,” Loni cried. “I’ve been so worried about this and The Hive and everything else.” She threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly. A tone sounded on her com-link and she rushed over to her clothes, pulled it off and touched the contact. “Loni Arrak… Oh hi Mom, how are you . . . Great . . . Okay, I’ll see you then, bye.” She came back and stood in front of Bill. “The shuttle with my folks will arrive in an hour. I have to get ready.”

  “No problem, Loni,” Bill said as he rose. “I’ll get dressed and clean up in my room.” He kissed her again and she hurried off to the restroom. His com-link chirped. “Bill Brewster.”

  “You old dog,” Cybil laughed. “I came by your room and you weren’t there. I have a funny feeling I know where you spent the night, Romeo.”

  “Knock it off, sis,” he replied. “Loni is a great girl and we’re just getting to know each other. You’d better watch it because I plan to make a full report to Mom and Dad about you and Rob Watson later.”

  She laughed again. “Very funny, little brother, but I tell Mom everything. I’ll keep this secret for you if you like. Hurry up and get ready. I’m dying for breakfast!”

  “Okay, Cyb,” he laughed. “Give me half an hour and then we can eat. Bye.” He closed the contact and pulled on his clothes. As he headed to the door, he knocked and said goodbye to Loni, who didn’t hear as she was singing in the shower.

  Chapter 14

  “So tell me everything, Billy, and don’t leave out the juicy details,” Cybil laughed as they sat together in the dining room of the Aranar Grand Hotel. The room was quite full due to the influx of visitors for the festivities to begin that evening. Almost everyone there was Zu. Loni had told them other races frequently came to the planet to hunt and engage in other winter sports, but it was rare for them to stay permanently.

  “Come on sis, you know a gentleman doesn’t kiss and tell,” Bill smiled. “You know Loni, she’s great. We are getting along very well.”

  “I could tell since you weren’t in your room this morning,” Cybil replied. “Where is that waiter?”

  A woman approached their table. She was well dressed but definitely not Zu. She looked almost as though she had stepped through a portal from the twenty-first. She was about five and one-half feet tall with black hair and gray eyes. She smiled as she approached the large table. “I’m so glad to find more Pa here! This is such a big table. Can I join you?” she asked.

  Bill stood to shake her hand and said, “Hi, I’m Bill Brewster and this is my sister Cybil. You can certainly join us, but what is a Pa?”

  She looked bewildered. “But you look just like you’re from the Pa culture. I’m sorry, I’m Serena Vanatee. I am President of the High Council for the planet Atar Pa, and I’m here for the celebration. Maybe I should find another table?”

  “No, please join us,” Cybil replied. “You can get a head start on the party by sitting with us. We are the children of Ambassador and Admiral Brewster.”

  “Really? Wow! I’m so honored to meet you,” Serena smiled as she sat across from them. “So, you’re descended from the original settlers of Earth 47?”

  “Born and raised there,” Bill said. “In fact, we were born more than a thousand years ago and jumped to this time not too long ago.”

  “So you lived on Earth 47? That is really amazing. Do you know Chief Engineer Loni Arrak too?” Serena asked.

  “My brother knows her a lot better than I do, Serena,” Cybil chuckled.

  “Cool it, sis,” Bill said. “My dad and I have actually entered The Hive on Tak-Makla with her. She is a wonderful young woman. But tell us more about you and your planet, Serena.”

  “Well, I am in my first term as President of Atar Pa. My planet was the second colony settled in this galaxy, just after Aranar Zu. We have just over one billion inhabitants now, but we are growing rapidly. There are more than one thousand Pa planets in the Society and many are too heavily populated already. My immigration team handles te
ns of thousands of relocation requests each week. You two should come there sometime. It’s nothing like this freezer,” she answered.

  “What’s it like, Serena?” Cybil asked.

  “It’s a very lush and wet planet, Cybil. Oceans cover about seventy percent of the planet, so we have become a major exporter of seafood. There aren’t many high mountain ranges. Most have worn down over the millennia and are now covered with trees. Our capital city, Pegat is located on the largest continent. That continent has a ring of grasslands and forests on most of the coasts. A ring of mountains just inside that has left the center very arid and dry. The other land masses are much smaller and dominated by jungles in the lower latitudes and forests in the higher ones,” Serena said.

  “Do you have a Hive there?” Bill asked.

  “Oh no, Bill. We don’t have the population for that. There are two Hives in our vicinity. The one now orbiting Aranar, and another near Seeka Opa, which is about halfway between here and Atar Pa,” she replied. She stood and said, “Hello there, I’m President Serena Vanatee of Atar Pa.”

  Bill and Cybil turned to see their parents arriving at their table. “Good morning, Mom and Dad. We made a new friend!”

  “Good day, President Vanatee, I am Ambassador Darlene Brewster and this is Admiral Dave Brewster,” Darlene said as they shook hands. After pleasantries, they all sat again. Two Zu waiters approached the table and offered menus and coffee to the group. After ordering breakfast, the waiters left.

  “It is a real honor to meet you both,” Serena said. “When the Society decided to repopulate this galaxy, many were skeptical. Things did not work out very well for humanity the last time. It is amazing that the remnants of Earth 47 found us before we could find you.”

  “As you can imagine, I was pretty shocked to run into a human Chief Engineer on a maklan world, Serena,” Dave replied. “Things have been pretty exciting since then. We are honored this celebration is being held for Loni and our family.”

  “You can imagine how excited I am to see that you are Pa, like me as well?” Serena asked.

  “We cannot deny the resemblance, Serena,” Darlene replied. “Unfortunately, there are very few of us from our time and the modern humans look quite different.”

  “Yes, I have heard that as well,” she replied. “But that gives me a great idea! Since you are Pa, I’d love to host you for a visit to Atar Pa. Our population isn’t as big as Aranar Zu, and we are not so rich and well developed. But you would have a good time, I guarantee that!”

  “It would be an honor,” Darlene smiled. “We were feeling a little lonely in a society that looks so different. A little diversion might be good.”

  “I don’t know Mom, I think Billy likes it here just fine,” Cybil laughed.

  “I told you to be quiet, Cyb!” Bill interjected.

  “Don’t worry, son, your secret is safe with us,” Dave winked. “Serena, just let us know and we will be there. There are a few more folks from the twenty-first who might want to join us, like Cybil’s boyfriend. Would that be okay?”

  “Of course, that would be wonderful. I’ll have my staff work on the details. I am very excited about this,” Serena said as the waiters returned with breakfast. “That looks wonderful. I hope they have coffee from Atar Pa. We grow the best coffee in the galaxy!”

  Darlene smiled, “We’ll let Dave decide. He is a coffee nut!”

  They sat quietly enjoying their food for several minutes. The crowd in the dining room continued to grow. The Zu were fascinated by the table of Pa in their midst. The Pa were not great fans of cold weather sports and it was unusual to find many Pa tourists in the winter. After another ten minutes, two well-dressed men approached the table. When she saw them approach, Serena jumped to her feet and shook their hands.

  “Consul Arnar, Consul Jeebo, it’s wonderful to see you both again,” Serena said. “Please let me introduce you to our guests. This is Ambassador and Admiral Brewster and their children. They are part of the surviving colony of Earth 47.” She turned to the Brewsters. “Dave and Darlene, these gentlemen are on the High Council for the Society of Humanity.”

  “Dear friends, we welcome you back into the Society!” Consul Arnar said as he hugged each member of the family. “Serena, I am so surprised to see they are Pa like us!”

  Consul Jeebo was not Pa or Zu. He was only four feet tall with dark blue, almost black skin and large piercing black eyes. “I welcome you too, fellow humans. As you can see, I am an Opa. We are one of the smallest species with only five hundred planets. I too am hoping to find more Opa in this galaxy.”

  Dave stepped up to the Consul and shook his hand heartily, “Consul, I think I can make your day. Hundreds of years ago, the people on Earth 47 were involved in a two century battle among themselves for dominance. The only thing that stopped the war was the arrival of the first sentient species from other worlds. Those Beings, the Kalideans, look just like you.”

  “What? Can that be true?” Consul Jeebo said.

  “It’s very true, Consul,” Dave continued. “After the war ended, the Kalideans helped Earth 47 with new technologies and medicine so that we could reach out into the stars. When mankind became too enamored with their vacations and studies, a great Kalidean scientist, Mencius, recommended humanity go back in time to find new blood to push us into space. That is where they found us. I also want you to know that Mencius is a good friend of mine and I would love to take you to Kalidus and introduce you.”

  “Fate has brought you to me, Dave Brewster,” Jeebo smiled. “I can’t believe this is all true. Please tell me more about the Kalideans.”

  “Jeebo, we have to get going,” Consul Arnar interrupted. “We have a Council meeting in ten minutes. It was wonderful meeting you all and I look forward to the event this evening.”

  “Dave, I will talk to you more later today! You have my word on that!” Jeebo said as they turned to leave the room.

  Chapter 15

  The skies over Sakar cleared late in the morning and the sun was shining high in the sky as the crowd assembled in the central square and park for the festivities. More than one hundred thousand were expected to witness the Freedom Award being given to Loni Arrak by President Bango and the High Council members present. Large video screens were set up behind the newly assembled stage where the activities would take place. Dozens of food and souvenir stands were set up on the boulevard facing the Aranar Grand Hotel, and the hawkers were busy setting up their goods and preparing Zu delicacies for the crowd. A musical event was scheduled to begin in the early afternoon which would lead up to the presentations. Bands from all over Aranar Zu would compete for the honor of serenading Loni Arrak after she received her award.

  Dave and Darlene walked out of the hotel and into the crisp afternoon air. The hotel had provided thick fur parkas and gloves for their guests not accustomed to cold weather. They planned to get some exercise and just blend with the locals, but they were more than a foot shorter than most Zu. They could see hundreds of people sitting in the park already, listening to the musical groups practice for the concert that would begin in one hour. After a few minutes, they stopped at a stand selling local cheeses. The rich smell was very familiar and Dave could not resist. On the counter, they saw an open newspaper with pictures of Loni, Dave and Darlene on the front cover. While their translators were effective for spoken language, they could not read the words.

  The shopkeeper was a tall woman with gray hair and slightly golden eyes. She looked at her customers, looked at the paper and back at them. “You are Dave and Darlene Brewster from Earth 47, right?” she said.

  “Guilty as charged,” Dave laughed. “Your cheeses smell wonderful!”

  She extended her hand and shook theirs. “I’m Ipa Nota. It’s an honor to meet you. Please, you must sample my goods. Our family makes these cheeses at our ranch five hundred miles south of here. Try this one first. It’s called ummu, and it’s my husband’s favorite,” she said as she passed a small plate to them.
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br />   The cheese was firm and rich, with a slightly crumbly texture. “Wow, this is very good,” Darlene said. “What kind of animal does the milk come from?”

  “There are only two animals on Aranar Zu that provide milk, the zolo and the nagli. Ummu comes from zolo milk. Here is a picture of both animals. I keep these for outworlders like you. Those animals are native to this planet and few other planets have anything like them,” Ipa replied as she handed a photo to Darlene.

  “They look a lot like a cow and a goat from Earth,” Dave said. “The ummu does taste like a cow’s milk cheese to me.”

  “If you say so, sir,” Ipa replied. “I don’t have any idea what those creatures are. Here, this is a nagli cheese called utok. Many people think it is too strong.”

  “I think I agree with them, Ipa,” Darlene said as spat the cheese into a napkin. “What do you think, Dave?”

  “I like it,” he replied. “I think this would be great with coffee!”

  “That’s the way I like it too,” Ipa said. “There is something about the bitterness of coffee that mellows the flavor of utok. I wish I had some coffee to offer you.”

  “That’s okay, Ipa. It was a pleasure to meet you and thanks for the cheese,” Dave said. They turned and continued their walk down the street. They passed stalls selling sizzling strips of meat on skewers and others with small baskets of freshly picked berries. Ipa must have spread the word about their presence because more and more Zu came to welcome them and take pictures.

  To avoid the crowds, they walked into the park and sat in the back row of seats, several hundred feet from the stage, where technicians were finalizing the sound and lighting settings. They watched the crowd get larger in anticipation of the musical event but most people sat closer to the stage so their area remained empty. Half an hour later, the musical competition began. After several bands had played, Bill and Cybil came to join them. Bill was carrying a large plate with skewers of roasted meat and slices of cheese. Cybil had a small tray with four hot beverage containers.