Looking at how the Cryellians positioned themselves in the maze, Ryder could see the problem they were going to run into almost immediately. Team Cryella had virtually bunkered the second turn. Having played the other direction, it didn’t look like anyone could get through.
Randy, Joel, and Athena were for a full frontal attack. “That might work, but wouldn’t they just drill you with five rounds each then wait for the rest of us? Wait, I think I’ve got it,” Ryder said.
Two minutes later Randy, Joel, and Ryder made a full frontal assault. They were peppered with the five disqualifying hits, plus at least ten more. “Where’s the rest of your team?” Aster inquired.
From the opposite end of the maze they heard laughter. “Oh,” Ryder said offhandedly, “while we were attacking, they jumped over two rows of hedges. We have four out free. Guess we win four to two.” Ryder had remembered Debbie’s twelve-foot jump the first day on Demeter. Realizing the potential, he had convinced the girls to take a lateral leap over the second row hedge while Randy, Joel, and he distracted the bunkered Cryella team.
Steerman looked like he was going to deck Ryder, but Aster pulled him back with a sharp glance. He stepped forward and held out a hand to Ryder. “Nice play, grub. Hadn’t thought of that. Guess we’ve been stationed here a little too long.”
The two teams turned their separate ways. The girls were on time for class, but everyone had to wait for the guys to change their clothes and limp in. Those bruises were going to hurt for a week.
“Who or what are Crysmellians?” Randy complained, as he sat down gingerly.
Mr. Small smiled broadly. “Today it sounds like they’re losers.”
Ryder thought he could see daggers coming straight out of Miss Li’s eyes. “Don’t encourage this, Roger.” Turning to the class, she shifted to lecture mode. “Cryella is our ally, and partner in defending Demeter.”
Mr. Small interjected. “Under the direction of the Sagittarian navy.”
MIss Li continued. “The world of Cryella was discovered by the Sagittarians nearly four hundred years after they began conscripting Terrans. It had been missed in early searches for possible allies because it was a planet with an unlikely star. The planet itself is very young. As a result, it does not have a very vibrant eco-system.”
“It’s basically a cold, unpleasant rock,” Mr. Small added.
“Roger!” Miss Li snapped.
“Okay, okay.” He put his arms up defensively.
“The Cryellians are not native to Cryella, much as Terrans are not native to Earth. The population was part of a task force lost in action more than three thousand years ago. One battleship made a successful crash landing on Cryella, and the people survived through a regimen of harsh discipline and shear stubbornness some say. Just as in the case of Earth, the crew of the battleship endured but went backward in technology for hundreds of years, but did not lose all of their knowledge base.
“Along with eeking out an existence on a nearly barren world, they began redeveloping technology, but they had such limited supplies and equipment to start with that they stumbled backward for several generations. Cryella may be inhospitable, but it did have an abundance of ores that helped as the people tried to regain their science.
“When the Sagittarian navy found the planet, the Cryellians were already exploring their solar system, as devoid of life as it was. Their scientists were trying to recreate drives that would power the people back to the stars. The Sagittarians were delighted.”
Mr. Small, leaning back on his chair, added, “If you can figure out what delighted is for a Slick, you’ll have to explain that to me.”
Everyone in the class laughed, except for Miss Li. “Cryella became an ally to the Sagittarius League. The Cryellians were trained, and their equipment upgraded over the course of the next fifty years. Their new navy served in the vanguard of the task force to retake Demeter. Their losses were heavy in the first assault. This was devastating to Cryella. The world only has a population of two million. Nearly one hundred thousand Cryellians died in retaking the surface of Demeter.”
Randy raised his arm.
“Yes, Randall?” Miss Li gestured.
“What about us? You know, Terrans. If I follow you right, we were allies for three or four hundred years before that. Where did we fit in?”
“We really did not understand technology, and were treated as such. Where we fit in was in the long war to recover the interior of Demeter. We were the peons. It hasn’t been until the last hundred years or so that any Terrans have even been trained as pilots.” Miss Li seemed to be losing her composure.
Mr. Small stood up. “If you think back to feudal times on Earth, you could compare us to serfs. In fact, that is how we were treated. We were grunts in a high-tech war. We did not gain any respect until the battles for the caverns. We were especially good at running down tunnels and hand-to-hand combat against the Per-Sian guerilla forces.”
“And now?” Ryder asked the question that was clearly on all of his friends’ minds.
“Demeter is a protectorate of the Sagittarius League. The home guard of the asteroid is composed of Terran and Cryellian forces. Over the decades, Terrans were particularly good at routing out the Per-Sian defenders in the final bastion of the caverns, and gravitated to a primary mission of defense of the interior. Meanwhile, the Cryellians took the main responsibility for defense of the exterior of the planetoid. Although, piloting fighters is not exclusive to the Cryellians anymore, they dominate in this area. Terrans only got into flying fighters over the last hundred years, but have had several notable pilots, with a handful receiving reserve commissions in the regular Sagittarian Navy. Mr. Small is a good example,” Miss Li explained
“You’re a pilot?” Debbie almost jumped out of her seat.
“Reserve pilot,” Mr. Small corrected.
“Roger is being too humble.” Miss Li smiled broadly. “He has not only served in the defense forces, but has served two tours with the Sagittarian navy.”
“Wow!” Debbie exclaimed. “That’s for me.”
Cynthia squeezed Ryder’s hand, and he did not respond, although a retort was on the tip of his tongue.
Miss Li’s voice rose to get everyone’s attention again. “This evolution from mere grunts for the Sagittarians to a quasi-independent status came about as much by need as by intent. Serving as governor of Demeter was not a sought-after position in the military-focused Sagittarian navy, and it was too remote to appeal to any type of rising politician in the Sagittarian hegemony.
Mr. Small snorted. “As if any of those bureaucrats would spend any time away from their precious capital.”
Miss Li stared at Mr. Small, who immediately fell silent. “In the late eighteenth century, mid-level government officials began to be drawn from both the Cryellian and Terran forces. In the nineteenth century, the Directorate became a reality, with a Chief Officer, referred to as the Director-General, usually from Terra, and a Director from Cryella when Terrans held the Director-Generalship. You could think of the Director-General with responsibilities similar to a president or prime minister. The Director is actually comparable to the Secretary of Defense with more military responsibilities. In addition, three Associate Directors and four Assistant Directors eventually made a quorum of nine, with three Sagittarian members rotated based on fleet command.”
Joel smiled. “So we’re in charge.” He leaned back smugly.
Mr. Small corrected Joel. “We share control with the Cryellians, but that almost fell apart.”
“How?” Randy joined in.
Miss Li stood silent until everyone quieted down. “An effort to shift the government back to Sagittarian control was attempted in the twentieth century, by the late Director-General Algernon Pisces, and in fact the governing Council was reinstated, with nine members from the Sagittarian League and four from the Directorate, the DDF. However, after the death of Director-General Pisces, the new Director-General found a loophole in the Articles of Confed
eration stating that the Council had to be called into session by the Directorate. Despite several calls for a vote by the minority Sagittarian members of the Directorate, the DDF has avoided calling the Council into session, thereby blocking the Sagittarian League from retaking control through political channels.
“That’ll show them!” Joel exclaimed.
Miss Li frowned. “Keep in mind that they are our allies and our sponsors,” then almost under her breath she added, “but it was a nasty bit of work.” She looked embarrassed that the words had actually crossed her lips and hesitated before she continued.
“Directorate members look at the act by Director-General Pisces as a betrayal and a dark moment in the modern history of Demeter. They also perceive the Sagittarian role as that of an attempted coup. The Sagittarian’s meanwhile consider the block by the current Director-General as tantamount to rebellion, and the Director-General himself as a rogue charlatan.”
At that point Miss Li looked around the room. “A lot to think about. Let’s just say that our relationship with the Sagittarian League is somewhat strained at the moment. But things seem to have settled down. I believe that is enough to think about for one day. I think it would be a good time to return to the pool and unwind, don’t you?”
And with that, she dismissed the class.
Chapter 9: Titheday
Waking up at 0500 was way too early. Feeling numb, Ryder got dressed and reached the common room in time to catch Mr. Small before his teacher walked out the door. “I suggest you grab some snack bars,” was all that Mr. Small said as he walked out looking like he was ready for a safari, dressed all in khaki.
Still munching one of three snack bars, Ryder joined the other early risers in Suite 319. Miss Li was ready to go. Debbie was asleep on a sofa, but dressed. Cynthia and Becky had both decided to join them. Cynthia was dressed in a riding skirt and an off-white blouse. Becky was dressed in clean jeans and a checkered shirt. Miss Li was dressed in one of those two-piece silk suits she wore, this time in orange with gold embroidery. The top looked like a mid-calf dress. She wore a black pair of slacks underneath. Ryder felt underdressed in cutoffs and a T-shirt.
“Ah, maybe I better go change,” he said.
“Ryder, you are dressed fine,” Miss Li said. “Titheday is not about who dresses the best. You should always dress how you feel.”
“All the same, I’d feel better about myself if you’d give me five minutes to change.”
“We can wait five minutes,” Miss Li replied softly.
Back in his room, Ryder started tossing through the small pile of clothing he had brought. Everything was wrinkled. The best he could come up with was a pair of jeans (even he knew the slacks were too wrinkled to wear) and a striped polo shirt. He was muttering to himself that he could easily have put his clothes through the auto-laundry service last night, but he hadn’t bothered. Well, it will have to do, he thought.
By the time he got back the troop was in the hallway. Debbie looked like she was half-dead, but at least she was moving, even if it was in zombie steps. They proceeded to the top floor using the escalator system. Ryder was surprised to see the level of activity. Dozens of people were on the escalators, and more were soon following behind.
“Why are so many people up at this hour?” Cynthia queried.
“Many people prefer solitude and reflection to actual services,” Miss Li responded.
Ryder started counting, but with moving targets he had to start over twice. “How many people are staying here right now?” he inquired.
“The manager said it was busy with the fleet in port,” Mr. Small responded. “Around six hundred staying here this weekend.”
“I’ve counted over two hundred people on the escalators, if I got it right,” Ryder said as they turned and stepped onto the moving staircase climbing to the next floor. “Are they all going to reflection and solitude? Seems like there won’t be very much solitude with everyone on the mountain.”
“About half of the people prefer reflection,” Miss Li said. “As I mentioned, the combination of a beautiful morning and a chance to be at peace is really quite a draw. And, with five mountains to choose from, I doubt it will be crowded.”
Ryder considered her comment as they continued through the main entry and back out to the tarmac. It was still dark outside. Considering that they were in a giant cave, it continued to surprise Ryder that it was not pitch black. It felt more like late twilight. The various groups quickly diverted along numerous paths. He could see only one group headed in the same general direction that Miss Li and Mr. Small were going. They soon left the smooth landing fields behind and started a moderate ascent along a graveled path about five feet wide.
Within a few hundred yards, the path started diverting into many smaller trails that continued to climb. The undergrowth fought to intrude on the narrowing lanes, causing the group to travel single file. The trees were uniformly tall. In the shadowy light Ryder could discern that they looked like a mix of pine or fir trees and some sort of tall deciduous trees with lots of small leaves that rustled in the breeze.
Everyone followed the lead of Miss Li and Mr. Small and remained quiet. Even Debbie seemed to understand that this was not a time for talking. All that Ryder could hear was the whisper of a light wind, the sound of footfalls, and an occasional stumble, although no one actually fell.
After ninety minutes of climbing, they reached a protruding shoulder of the mountain. There was a small grassy meadow that was totally unoccupied overlooking the dark water far below. Ryder’s pants were damp up to his calves from moisture that kept flicking off from the bushes they disturbed. He reflected on the moisture from the obvious rainfall and once again wondered how it could rain inside a cave.
Mr. Small pulled a large blanket out of his knapsack and tried to spread it out on the meadow, but a breeze caught the blanket every time he tried to shake it out. “Ryder, could you help me please?” he asked.
Those were the first words Ryder had heard since they had started on the trail, and he wasn’t sure how to respond verbally. He simply walked over, grabbed the other side of the blanket, and helped Mr. Small stretch it out. Miss Li quickly sat down, crossed her legs, and pointed invitingly to the others. They sat quietly for a few minutes, but Ryder’s mind was racing. How was there a wind? How was there rain? This isn’t making sense.
Suddenly dawn burst forth, reflecting off the cloud formations at the edge of sight. An explosion of light set the sky ablaze. Every shade of the spectrum rose into a great prismatic wall. It was breathtaking. Time seemed to pause, but Ryder realized it couldn’t have been more than five minutes later that the colors had settled into the greenish-blue hued “sky,” and that the clouds were rising vertically out of sight.
“That was fabulous,” Becky whispered.
“That is a rising,” Mr. Small replied quietly.
“How does it work?” Debbie asked.
Miss Li sat almost trancelike and did not respond, but Mr. Small volunteered. “The easiest comparison is that Demeter is an ancient geode. The interior is loaded with quartz, as well as an abundance of precious metals, gems, and ores. However, the critical resource that made all this possible was ice. The top of Demeter is a giant ice field. I’m not sure if we will get a chance to visit the glacial mass, but there are numerous stations in the ice fields. Over the course of several millennia scientists used a combination of heat and natural reflection to melt portions of the ice cap to create the fresh water seas, although there are plenty of minerals in the water. The development also boosted internal temperatures to support plant life. The balancing process allows for condensation and some melting and refreezing that results in the formation of clouds and winds.
The system works so well now that we have rains every night and clear days shortly after the rising. Clouds that remain actually ascend back toward the ice fields, leaving us a sometimes hazy, but always beautiful, day. The external lighting requires very little of our hydroelectric power to gen
erate. The plants are at the far walls hundreds of miles beyond the horizon. As they begin generating light in the morning, it is reflection upon reflection, creating these incredible risings. Really much better than any sunrise or sunset I’ve seen on Earth. At the end of each cycle, the power plants reduce their power output, and darkness creeps upon us in the evenings, so we only get to celebrate the change once each cycle, while on Earth we can enjoy the drama of the light and dark cycle twice a day.”
Miss Li, coming out of her reflection, simply stated, “It’s a dual miracle of nature and technology, perhaps the ultimate combination of God.”
They sat quietly for quite some time. Ryder pondered the technology that made Demeter work. Was there a greater hand involved? Was there a God? Why were they here anyway? Not just in Demeter, but here in existence. How did they get here? What was the purpose? Ryder’s legs were numb. He realized that he had been sitting and thinking for well over an hour. He did not have answers, but he did feel a sense of awe, and suddenly he felt a tremendous surge of warmth enter into his being, a warmth that lingered for a short time then gradually was wisped away as he tried to grasp its exact meaning. Maybe there is a God, he thought. Regardless, Demeter is a miracle, and I’m glad I’m here. He looked down upon dozens of lush green islands and a turquoise sea. Its small waves had settled to a near stillness in the short time they had been on the shoulder of Mount Sunday Silence.
Chapter 10: Europe
Ryder could not help thinking of the following day as Monday. They were leaving that afternoon, and Miss Li had insisted that everyone have all their clothes laundered. Ryder was again dressed in his best jeans, now washed. He was also wearing the same polo shirt he had worn the previous day, but it had also been laundered and pressed. It looked like new.
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