The Colony Ship Conestoga : The Complete Series: All Eight Books

by John Thornton

  “Thank you,” Eris replied and switched off the private channel. She then called over to Peter. “Thanks for checking. We cannot be too careful while we press onward. That section will need to be totally removed to push the space open for the new bridge. The heat issues should be safe.”

  “Understood. Thank you Captain,” Peter replied. He punched in some commands on the conservation slate, which relayed those to the blue automacube. An older and somewhat scarred automacube, EA-270 then rolled up to the area and along with the new automacube continued the rebuilding process.

  “Keep asking your questions, Peter. Your insight is invaluable,” Eris said with genuine feeling and appreciation.

  Peter spoke again. “Captain? I see Monika and her adorable little boys often, she has helped greatly with ideas on these plans,” Peter hesitated. “I also see Jerome is around. If I may ask, is there any word on Cammarry?”

  “Cammarry? None. Sandie is monitoring for signals, and the com-link is still functional, but we have heard nothing,” Eris replied sullenly.

  “None of my contacts have seen her either,” Shadow whispered to Eris. “There are still two contacts wandering within the shell of Alpha. They should have been terminated.”

  “Well,” Peter continued. “Jerome does not ask about her, but I can tell the man is deeply grieved. Oh, he does well enough learning to be a daddy. Monika is a good and patient teacher. But he is restless and unresolved. Is there anything we can do? I mean, he is quite sophisticated in technology, and his AI Sandie is remarkable. It just seems a shame to waste that resource since we do have such a tight schedule. I also think the man needs a mission or purpose.”

  Eris considered carefully how to answer. For a while the silence drew out as she prayed for discernment about what to say, and even more importantly, what to do. Finally, she responded. “Peter, would you use a pipe for pressurized hydraulics if you knew it had fissures in it?”

  “No. Not unless I could mend them and test its resilience before using it,” Peter answered. “Are you saying that Jerome is too badly broken to be of service?”

  “Not necessarily,” Eris countered. “However, you and I know well the traumas we suffered in Beta. Some are coping better than others. Now, magnify that by three, and I think you may understand the emotional schematics of Jerome.”

  “Three?” Peter was puzzled.

  “Yes, three. First, he lost his home place, that Dome 17 on Earth. Second, he went through the nightmare in Beta. Third, he lost his, excuse me I almost said wife, or sister, but I think the correct term is age-mate. He lost Cammarry. Frankly, Peter, I am unclear on the details of that relationship, and I do not have time to study post-apocalyptic psychology. I do know he is damaged. Only Cammarry can actually relate to all he has lost. Oh, and remember, he blames himself, right or wrong, for the slave rebellion in Alpha. His mourning is great. Somehow, those who mourn will be comforted, but in what manner, and how long that takes is a mystery.”

  “Thank you Captain. Sorry to distract from our work,” Peter answered. “I was being optimistic, as babies always bring out my more productive side. Like I said, Jerome is figuring out how to be a papa. I just thought…but never mind.”

  Eris laughed a bit. “Peter, you are not usually such a coy person. What are you driving at?”

  Peter sighed deeply. “He has designed a robotic probe. I saw his designs and they are impressive. Monika said he works on it for hours after the babies go to sleep. I believe it might help us in understanding what is happening to the other habitats. You know we only have rough ideas and theories about the remaining habitats. Jerome has based his design on the robotic probe which first came to the Conestoga and led his scout ship here. I believe Jerome is afraid to bring it to your attention, yet, from what I saw, I think it has merit.”

  “It is a good idea Eris,” Shadow whispered. “You know that situation in Alpha needs to be addressed. Not just my other contacts, but that gravity sink hole in the hanger bay. A probe might allow us to find out more, without panicking the others.”

  Eris considered. She still resisted Shadow, and was hesitant to completely trust it. “We do have a severe shortage of shuttle pilots, and a limited number of shuttles. Probes, unpiloted craft, or drones, whatever you want to call them is a smart idea. I will take it up with Jerome myself,” Eris replied. “Thank you for telling me.”

  “Honestly, Monika asked me to speak to you. She is worried about Jerome and thinks he needs an outlet for all his emotions. Why she cares so much about him, still surprises me, but she does. So, I support her, the babies, and even Jerome. Besides, we do need to find those other habitat’s precise locations.”

  “Right! Project Ascension needs to find all the repositories in order to go and fix them, and secure them,” Peter replied.

  Eris immediately felt remorse for not fully disclosing the plan to Peter. He was a diligent, hard-worker, and deserved to know that they had less than one hundred-twenty days to get the habitats off of Zalia. The lattice of compeers had estimated that most humans would function less effectively knowing the looming threat, rather than being inspired to just work quickly. Eris, being an engineer did not question that, especially after the AI Sandie had connected her to the simulation of Dome 17’s Doctor Chambers who confirmed that mass panic was a real potential.

  “Peter, I believe your idea is so worthwhile, I will go right now and discuss it with Jerome. It is about time I saw those babies again, anyway.” Then Eris, who had been thinking about Doctor Chamber and his excellent advice, added. “Now, I know you like to put in long hours, but remember, the needle ship has not yet instituted proper circadian light cycles all over. Here in Navigation and Astrogation the automacubes will work around the clock, but you should not, even though the light is normal here. So keep track of your time, and get the proper rest you need. You are welcome to stay in the guest quarters over there. It would be a long trip to get back to your carousel before you need to sleep.”

  Peter smiled at her. “Thanks for caring, Captain. I will sleep here tonight.”

  Eris grinned as she departed from the construction site and took the funicular car to the nearest terminal by Monika’s apartment. She knew Jerome had been living there. While she traveled, sealed within the funicular car, the whole of the cosmos outside the clear permalloy walls, she spoke to Sandie.

  “Sandie? Has Jerome asked you about some unpiloted craft he has designed?”

  “Not directly, Captain Eris,” Sandie answered. “However, I did conjecture a solid probability that that was what he has been working on. He rarely speaks with me, even when I have made the attempts at conversations. He has a conservation slate which he has repurposed so as to be unreadable by the lattice. He believes it is unreadable by me as well. However, I cannot let him do something which is self-destructive, nor endangers others. Therefore, I have set some basic monitoring guidelines on his conservation slate. Additionally, he has had some success in restoring a Dome 17 data stick. We know something like that was done once before in Alpha’s Reproduction and Fabrication, and Jerome has tried to imitate that. He has been partially successful in retrieving some information from the data stick, and its reader.”

  Eris watched as the vehicle, which carried her, crawled across the exterior of the needle ship. The vast blackness of space reminded her of the night of darkness in Alpha. Here, however, there were stars and when the rotation was correct, the red sun of the solar system they were in could be seen. While the green and yellow planet was named Zalia, the solar system they were in had never been identified precisely, so she thought of the red star around which Zalia orbited, as the sun of Zalia. From the position she was in, that sun was hidden, as it was only visible now from the opposite side of the needle ship.

  The funicular stopped, the walls became opaque, and gravity manipulation shifted gently as the car rolled to where the side could open. She stepped out and found herself in the dim light of the needle ship. The growth medium here was thick and spon
gy under her feet. She walked down the hallway to where Monika had set up her apartment.

  “I hope I do not wake the babies,” Eris said as she tapped a code on the nine-section color control pad. The door gave a small chime, and slid sideways into its pocket.

  The interior of the apartment was well lit and fresh air wafted over Eris as she stood at the threshold.

  “Come on in Captain Eris!” Monika called happily. “I am just tending to Kalur, but will be just a minute. Jerome is in the front room rocking Brink. Take a seat.”

  “Thanks Monika.” Eris walked inside.

  The apartment had a small foyer at the entrance. There had once been a double seal set of doors. The second door was retracted into its pocket about a meter and a half from the front door. As Eris stepped past that, she turned to her left and saw the front room where there was a couch, several comfy chairs, and a display on the far wall. The display showed a motion image of the sea from the Beta habitat. The sea was beautiful and had a three-dimensional depth to it. A small ship was sailing in the waves, and the coastline was pleasant and inviting.

  “It is a lot different than the last time we saw Beta,” Jerome stated in a soft voice.

  “Indeed,” Eris replied and looked at Jerome. His medium complexion and short, curly, dark brown hair and hazel eyes contrasted somewhat with the pale complexion of the baby in his arms. Jerome’s lean and muscular frame was clothed in simple gray colored fatigues, not the RAM suit Eris had usually seen him wearing. Seeing him nurturing a child surprised Eris more than she expected, but he appeared to be doing a nice job of it. The baby happily reached up for his nose. Jerome tipped his face down, and the baby’s small and light fingers stroked across his nose.

  “Little Brink is fascinated with my nose. Right trooper,” Jerome said as he wiggled his nose in response to the baby’s touch. “Of course, Kalur also likes to pull on my face: ears, nose, eyes, mouth. Just like a normal baby.”

  “Hey, our babies are normal,” Monika chided in good humor as she walked in from the bedrooms in the back. She was breastfeeding Kalur, but had a light tan shirt over her shoulders. Her face was glowing with joy.

  “Yes, I know the boys are normal. But they were born…” Jerome halted for a moment as little Brink latched his fingers into a nostril. Brink also cooed some baby sounds.

  “Naturally. Jerome, the word you want to use is naturally,” Monika answered as she buttoned up her top and lifted Kalur to burp him. “Our babies were born naturally, and they are brothers, not age-mates.”

  “Yes, I agree,” Jerome answered. “But I was reading and someone said, because of the revolution of the Earth upon its axis, the signs in the constellations vary every four minutes, and thus even the fate of twins may differ considerably.” He looked over to Eris. “That was from some old-time religion, is it in your tradition?”

  Eris was unsure if Jerome was mocking her or was serious. His demeanor was difficult to assess. “No. I believe that sounds more like a variation of Vedic Astrology. My mother would have been able to address your question more than I can, but that philosophy is many thousands of years old and looks to the stars, planets, and the moon. I am not sure how that would apply in this case, as Zalia has no moon, and the constellations here have not been studied like they were from old Earth.” Eris then realized that she had spoken of her mother without the gut-stabbing anguish which usually accompanied those memories. “So, you four are doing well?”

  “Yes,” Monika answered quickly. “Jerome even programmed that display to run video loops showing recorded scenes from Beta. That was a sweet gift for me. It switches about every hour to a different view. The sea is great, but in my heart I am really a nemophilist. Seeing the trees in Beta again, makes me smile, and Jerome did that. It was a kind and considerate gesture. He found them in an archive. I do love the forests and trees.” She smiled at him. “I said we could do the same for images from his Dome 17, as Sandie has that information, and we could easily install other displays on other walls.”

  “I am not ready, not yet, to face seeing that. Tan and radioactivity are not aesthetically appealing. Besides, Beta is much more beautiful than Dome 17 ever was. All I miss from Dome 17 are the people, and I will never see them again.” He looked down at little Brink and then kissed him on the forehead. “I must consider the future.” He looked over at Eris and his countenance grew dark for a moment. Like a storm washed over his face and eyes. “Do you have word?”

  Eris knew he was referring to Cammarry, but he did not speak her name. “No. However, I do come with an opportunity. I hope we can discuss it.”

  Monika sat down next to Jerome with Kalur nestled into her arms. “What do you have in mind?”

  Eris silently prayed for a good outcome as she broached the subject. “We need to locate the other habitats in much more precise ways. Some of our previous data was erroneous, and we really need accuracy as we plan ahead. We lack the shuttle pilots to go and wander about trying to locate where the habitats are. Jerome, what do you think of using physical probes to fly into Zalia’s atmosphere and scan for information.”

  The dark lifted immediately off Jerome’s look. He began speaking rapidly and with excitement. “Dome 17 launched robotic probes which traveled many light-years and found all seven lost colony ships. Brink’s designs are near perfection in accuracy, and did not have pilots, yet they all excelled at their task. On Zalia we are looking, not at distances measured in light-years, but in kilometers. So we do not need nearly the technological sophistication. No faster-than-light drive, nor the FTL message system is needed. The beacon can be set as a package of instruments, which could be attached to the exterior of each habitat. That package will allow for greatly enhanced communications through the Zalian atmosphere. The package can also allow Sandie to probe that habitat’s nonphysicality. The robotic probes sent to the colony ships did rudimentary tests, but the returning messages had to be compressed and sent via the FTL system. Here, communication would be much easier. In fact, I have some designs…” His hazel eyes met Eris’ golden eyes, and he suddenly understood. “You already know about it, right?”

  “I have only heard that it was a possibility. Jerome, you have experience, knowledge, and abilities which are really needed now. But rest assured, no one is spying on you. No one.” Eris hoped she would be believed. Jerome’s temper was sometimes unpredictable and potentially volatile.

  Monika laid a hand on his shoulder.

  He looked back and forth between the two women, and then at the twin babies. “Spies? Well, my history suggests that perhaps some oversight of me might be warranted. I do have plans for atmospheric robotic probes. I thought they would be used to assess the Crocks and their activities, but gaining as much information as possible on the other habitats is very important. That is not at all in conflict with what I was thinking was needed. Finding allies against the Crocks could be essential. But it is your call, Captain.”

  It was a rare moment when Jerome used the title captain without loading it with disparaging verbal tones.

  “I would like you and Monika to oversee the project. I think you can do that as a team from your home here, without much interference with your raising your sons. However, I am not a mother, so the decision is yours.”

  “Fill us in on what you are envisioning,” Monika said as she smiled at Jerome. “Unless, Jerome, you are just against the idea?”

  “No. It is a good idea. I was serious, not sarcastic in saying we should learn more about the other habitats. Captain Eris, I have had a metanoia, or revelation, while learning about these babies. I am a changed man. I am unsure how anyone will ever trust me again, but I will do what I can to help. We need to gather as much information as possible, before the Crocks strike again. Probes will help with that. Those who are victorious warriors win in the mind first. They then proceed out to wage the war. Defeated warriors jump to war first and then somehow seek to win in their minds, but it is too late.”

  Eris was realizing that the
redamancy she was observing between Jerome, Monika, and the babies had had a profound influence on him. Love had changed him. He was indeed a changed man, but still was focused on the Crocks as an enemy. So she carefully said, “Jerome, knowledge is power. In my tradition, I learned that when a leader is going out to wage war, the first thing must be a counting of forces. Can that leader’s myriad forces defeat the enemy’s host? If the leader cannot, then a delegation should be sent asking the terms of peace. So these probes will allow us to count the costs, and know the facts. The truth is our greatest asset. As it stands, we have limited information, and that is perhaps our greatest weakness. So tell me of your design.”

  “Well, let me show you.” Jerome carefully handed Brink to Monika who slipped him into her lap opposite his brother. Both were getting sleepy. Jerome stood and walked to the bedroom and came back with a conservation slate which had a data stick reader mounted on it. In that holder was a data stick.

  “Dome 17 technology integrated into Conestoga technology?” Eris asked with sincere admiration.