The mood of the cabin had grown dark. Not only had an enemy appeared out of nowhere, threatening their very existence, but now Rajiv had told them there were more, on a nightmarish planet seventeen light-years away. If they dispelled the current threat, another might be just a few generations away.
Maria solis
For the last ten hours, she’d been studying the murals, which stretched throughout the cave. She was intrigued by the images of space ships and humanoids, but the more she delved into the deeper reaches of the cave, the more she became fascinated by the Akhab themselves. She felt she had begun to understand these creatures, although they were completely alien to her in so many ways. They didn’t have a written language. Even so, they had rich traditions and an understanding of their world and surroundings. If something were deemed important enough, they would paint, and so their story had grown into murals extending into every corner of the cave.
For a while, she had considered whether the images of humanoids coexisting with the Akhab were recent, and that maybe somehow the Akhab had observed their settlements and drawn these portrayals of how the two might come together some day. But when she broached the subject with Jujjj, who always tended to linger around her, as he was now, he had motioned for her to follow. Maria had followed him deep into the cave and down through some sort of elevator made out of wood and rope, which took them to another cave, with more Akhab in nooks and crannies. They had walked through tunnels and caverns until they reached a hall in which the murals ended abruptly. The final image was of a human being. She recognized the stance and features, although the face was blurry like the ones in the outer cave. It was a figure she would always recognize: her mother. She looked at the images next to it and found what she was looking for. There it was, a picture of herself on the day she first discovered this cave, standing just outside the cave’s entrance, weight on one foot to relieve the pain of the one she had injured. It was obvious, and it changed everything.
She realized she’d had everything backward. The first images were of the earliest Akhab history, while the ones in these deeper caves reflected the events of today, with both Maria and her mother making enough of an impression to be immortalized on their walls.
“You, Maariaa! And Isaabellaa!” Jujjj said, excitedly, pointing. Maria’s head felt dizzy, and it wasn’t just the pregnancy. The arrangement of the murals was logical; she just hadn’t considered it before. But there was something about them that puzzled her. Some sort of understanding that she knew still escaped her.
“How old are the murals?” she suddenly asked. Jujjj didn’t seem to understand, so she rephrased.
“How old is this?” Jujjj nodded eagerly.
“Thiis not oold. Thiis neew. Noow,” he said. She expected that, she just wanted to nudge him into understanding what she was really after.
“Okay,” she said, “what about the ones near the cave mouth, how old?” He didn’t seem to understand.
Something in the back of her mind suddenly connected. She felt an intense urge to go back to the outer cave, where the murals had begun. There was something… something that tickled her about them. She ushered Jujjj along, and they hurried back the way they had come. Jujjj still seemed confused. Maria tried to apologize, but she doubted Jujjj understood the meaning of an apology. It had to be a human concept, she thought, or at least something the Akhab weren’t used to.
Once they were back in the outer cave, she had a good look at the mural. The paint looked ancient—worn, but incredibly hardy. She’d studied it from every corner already, trying to understand everything it meant. In the beginning, she had seen it as a cultural artifact, like archaeological findings—useful for understanding an old culture. Then, as she came to understand that this was as much a part of the language of the Akhab as their oral language, she began to understand that the murals were something more. It was just as precise and detailed as any written history. Painting, it seemed, was in fact their written language. Every detail in the images told a story, an important aspect of their history and lives. But something had been missing.
Now, having seen the most recent additions, the images of herself and her mother, and realizing that the ones in the outer cave were the beginning of their painted history, the missing pieces began to fall into place.
The first images showed an Akhab greeting one of these humanoid beings. How could it be? That moment, that particular moment, must have been so significant to them that nothing of what had gone before mattered anymore. That must have been an enormous transition, from one state of being to another, and she suspected it would always puzzle her.
“Akhab becoome Akhab,” Jujjj said, his voice reverent as he stared at that same image.
“What did you say?” she asked.
“Akhab becoome Akhab,” he repeated. “Befoore, Akhab noothiing. Akhab aanimaal.” And she understood. The Akhab had developed self-consciousness.
She felt dizzy again, and thoughts swirled through her mind. She finally understood, the logical lines were drawn, the connections made. The Akhab counted their history from that moment—those first images. Those images where they interacted with humanoids marked the beginning of their recorded history. And indeed it was the beginning of their history. And then it was the images of Maria and Isabella, which were recent. The images of the humanoids looked exactly the same, except for different suits, different facemasks.
However impossible it seemed, the only possible conclusion was that the humanoids, dating back to the beginning of Akhab history, were the same as on those recent images of her and her mother. The humanoid creatures were actually… human.
Human beings had been here before, thousands of years ago. And the Akhab had gained self-consciousness at the same time, which meant these humans must have contributed to a major step in the Akhab’s evolution.
Ben waters
Ben knew he was in trouble. A week ago, he had fallen down a steep cliff and twisted his foot badly. It had only hurt for a moment before the parasite had boosted his endorphin production to the point that the pain subsided to a dull ache. A couple of days later, it was as if he’d never hurt himself at all. In the back of his mind, he knew it wasn’t the way it should be; that he should have been holed up somewhere, hoping for someone to come find him. But that was the way it was with the parasite. It took care of him, but it came with a price.
He knew the price all too well by now. He had killed Lisa and Drew, his two best friends, and an innocent messenger. All because the parasite that protected him also made him do bad things to those who upset him or provoked him, even if it was nothing but a strange look. He curled his lips in disgust. The worst thing was that every time the parasite helped him, it took away a piece of him, leaving him less of himself and more controlled by this… bug.
And this time, he didn’t know if there would be anything left of him at all. The water rat, almost two meters long and all teeth and claws, had nearly killed him, and though Ben proved the stronger fighter, the venom and blood loss had made him pass out right next to the dead creature. Now he lay curled up in agonizing pain, waiting for the parasite to relieve him of some of the worst of it. He had meant to crawl under a nearby cliff to get out of the drizzle, but even that had proved too painful, so he just lay there while the rain washed off the grime and blood.
He shivered. Come night time, it would get cold, but he hoped the parasite would help him regain his strength, at least enough to find shelter. He remembered once, back when he was just a fresh conscript in General Hayden’s rebel army, when he’d been forced to kill a dog. The instructor had said it would strengthen his resolve, get him ready for killing men. He’d vomited afterward, when there was just him and the other kids. How long ago had it been? How many had he killed since? He’d lost count a long time ago.
When he was placed on the New Discovery, the general himself had told him to take care of his daughter, the old man’s eyes misting as he spoke. And he had, for a while. He had taken care of the kids,
helped calm them as the rocket shook, comforted them when they had cried, forever bereaved of their parents. Once they reached Earth’s orbit, though, Tina Hammer, the executive officer of the Exodus, had made sure they were let on board and given a new future on Aurora.
Life had been good for a while, he thought, as he felt the pain dull slightly. All the kids had seen their share of horrors, and he had probably seen more than most. They were mending, though, and Ben had seen that life could be more than just a fight for survival. He hadn’t cared about the politics, all the differences of opinion. He had seen hell, and however things were run here, on the new world, anything would be better than what he had come from. That was before they shot Harry.
He tried to move his chewed-up leg. It was better, but it would still be a while yet before he could crawl to shelter. He lay back, trying not to think about everything that had happened. He was so tired! He knew there was no turning back, of course. There would be no redemption, not for killing his friends and the messenger. Nothing that he could do would ever set that straight.
Damn parasite! he thought. This wasn’t him, it couldn’t be!
He thought about drowning. Even the bug couldn’t save his body from that, could it?
Or he could snatch a gun from somewhere, that would certainly do it. He might be able to, once he got his strength back. How nice it would be, to be free from the regrets, free from guilt.
It was tempting. Oh, so tempting.
But why should he be free? Why should he deserve that, after all he had done?
Besides, he knew he’d never be able to work up the courage. He had tried once, back on Earth, but he just couldn’t do it. And now the parasite would just mess with his mind again and stop him anyway.
Maybe he should just turn himself in? At least then he would get his just punishment, and it might even give them a chance to study the parasite. He knew they had to figure it out, or humans would always be in danger on Aurora. One small glitch, and another would be consumed by the bug and become its willing tool, for whatever purpose it served.
A purpose! That’s what he needed. If he had a purpose, something worth doing, there might still be something he could do. Though nothing could bring back Lisa and Drew, he might be able to protect others, or help someone in need. The only problem was that in this situation, there was no purpose to be had. Nothing to do but lie here, waiting for the parasite to take yet another piece of him, the price of healing one more time.
Chapter 11
Maria solis
Maria sat with her mother and Jujjj in the large cave, having gone over the parts of both human and Akhab history that they thought might give them a clue that would help them understand what the murals had told them. The fact that humans had been here thousands of years ago was completely mind-boggling, and Maria had a hard time wrapping her head around it. How was that possible, when man had only ventured out to space in the last century of Earth’s history?
She wished she could talk to Thomas. In fact, she had to, and soon. He was entitled to know. The thought lightened her mood. They were having a baby! She wasn’t prepared for it at all, but she had embraced it the second the doctor had told her. It was something she couldn’t explain; it just felt right. Being pregnant made her even more worried for him, though. She didn’t know where he was at the moment, and she suspected she wouldn’t see much of him for a while yet.
“So they came here because their home world had been destroyed,” Isabella said, while Jujjj nodded frantically. Maria let her thoughts of Thomas and the baby go and focused on the conversation.
“Giveer of Liiffe, hoome woorld,” he said.
“This is… amazing…” Maria said. “I mean, I still don’t get it. Humans came here, millennia ago. But from where? And what does it mean? What does that make us Earthborn?”
“Do not knoow,” Jujjj said. “The saame, but from diifferent plaace. Do not knoow. Not understaand.” Jujjj was intelligent, really intelligent, Maria thought. The way he had learned English from scratch was nothing short of impressive. But this was an entirely different ballgame.
“So let’s sum up what we know,” Isabella said. Always the logical thinker and the one searching for solutions rather than stacking up the problems.
“They came here from a planet called Giver of Life, or something that means Giver of Life. Does this have to be Earth? Granted, Earth has been known by similar names, but it could just as well be somewhere else, right?” she said.
“Then what does that make us? That’s what I’m trying to make sense of,” Maria said.
“You huuman, too. Like theem,” Jujjj said, a smile visible beneath the fur.
“Yes, we’re human, too.” She looked at her mother again.
“So, is it possible? That two strains of human species have evolved in two different places? Or is the other explanation more likely, that we’re actually connected in some way?” Isabella shrugged.
“Well, I don’t know. If you ask me, I’d say the probability of two seeds growing into two exact copies of each other, in two different locations, light-years from each other, is highly unlikely. I’d bet on a common ancestor or something. Something that could spread across the universe. God, perhaps? I just don’t know. You’re the biologist, but I believe this is one puzzle biology can’t solve. At least not without more history.” She smiled, having compared their educational backgrounds like that. Maria had to smile, as well. She knew that neither had the tools to solve this. If only the Akhab had been able to pinpoint the origin of the humans. But she understood what Jujjj had said; the Akhab counted themselves as Akhab only after the first humans arrived. And they had no knowledge of anything that came before, or at least nothing they wanted to share. The Akhab were strange that way; they were completely honest and open, after their own fashion. It seemed if they deemed something not worthy of conversation, they would keep it to themselves, even if it would seem extremely important to her. For example, only after figuring it out for herself, Jujjj had freely spoken of the humans who had once lived here alongside the Akhab. Until she had, the fact clearly hadn’t seemed relevant to the Akhab. She shook her head, desperate to know more, but unable to figure it out. Perhaps given time, artifacts or traces of these first humans would be found, but for now, it was a mystery she couldn’t solve.
Kenneth taylor
Kenneth had taken to drinking tea with his guest from the Indira Federation as often as he could. There was so much to learn, and he felt that his conversations with the Dehlian gained him an insight that would prove valuable not only in the here and now, but also in the long run. And although the cultural differences sometimes made it difficult to grasp a concept or understand a line of reasoning, in many ways, Kenneth and Rajiv thought alike. Kenneth suspected it had to do with their shared interest in the politics of Earth in the final decades, and the way they both saw through the rhetoric and propaganda. He realized a deep friendship was being formed, and he let it. The future Aurora needed strong ties to the Indira Federation, and it seemed they shared a common enemy and even quite a few common ideals. They could have done worse.
It was all very different from the world they had left behind. The boundaries between nations and peoples had been tightly governed and patrolled in those years. Still, sometimes they blurred, even in a world where mistrust and rivalry thrived. Take the Russians, who were part of the European community, which had cooperated with the Americans, and at the same time ran their own project. Rajiv didn’t know what happened to the European starship, only that it had been a lot smaller than the Exodus. It had also been one of the least likely to succeed, in Rajiv’s opinion, as the Europeans were deeply split amongst themselves. While the Russians had been part of that project, they had also worked with the Chinese on the generation ships, which on the one hand had succeeded in saving more than any other starship, while on the other hand, had resulted in a nightmare. Another Russian group, privately funded, had even worked with a Scandinavian effort to build a moon ba
se. This project had people from other nations, as well, even a few Americans, but Rajiv believed there were mainly Russians and Scandinavians on board the shuttles taking as many as possible from Earth to the moon in the final years prior to impact. It seemed they had been planning to wait it all out, until Earth became habitable again. He would have loved to know what happened to them. Had they managed to stay alive while Earth recovered? Had they succumbed to horrors such as the Chinese? Or had they run out of resources altogether, and simply died? He had even spoken to George Havelar about it, now that they were gradually trying to work together. Havelar had told him that they had ruled out the moon early on in the planning, so there must have been huge and perhaps insurmountable obstacles to such a plan. Still, there had to be at least a small chance that they had made it, and he wished there was a way to find out. But, however that had turned out, they had more pressing issues to deal with right here on Aurora.
The Chinzhoi, as Rajiv referred to them, had made no move as of yet to go north, which suited Kenneth just fine. He knew, though, it was only a matter of time, and they needed to develop a strategy. So far, they had discussed the fact that their enemy was human, how to deal with their long-range weapons, and how to prepare defenses. All well and good, but there was no solution in these conversations. They needed an overall plan, something that would encompass all the tactical considerations. Kenneth had thought about whether it would be possible to negotiate, but that had been quickly ruled out. The Chinzhoi had made no attempt to contact them and seemed bent on taking whatever they wanted. Kenneth suspected that meant all of Aurora.
“I wish I knew more about them,” Kenneth said.
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