Excolopolis_Poles of Enforcement

by Jack L. Marsch

  “I'm glad you haven't lost heart, Jeff, but pay close attention to everything you learn here because one day you may get the post,” she said, and then spotted the head of the energetics department, with whom she still wanted to talk. She nodded to Jeff and walked towards Gibbs.

  “Understood, Ms Colella,” Jeff called out.

  “How are they holding up, Neil?” Karen asked as she fell in beside Gibbs.

  “Surprisingly well. I would've freaked out if I were to be banished into space for years on end,” he said.

  Karen smiled. “We've put together a fantastic team. I'm sure there'll be no problems that they're unable to cope with,” Karen looked around at the crew.

  “I hope the map won't be a problem either.”

  “Well, yeah, me too.”

  “It's crazy, Karen. You have to admit that it's crazy no one knows that we're using extraterrestrial technology to navigate, besides a handful of people!”

  “Look, make sure you keep it to yourself!”

  Gibbs nodded. “Where's Mr Steersman?” he asked.

  “Concentrating on other things,” she replied shortly. Karen knew why Steersman wasn't taking a more active role in the launch of the space fleet. She knew that he would not rest, would work day and night until he established direct contact with … them.”

  “The crews sure would appreciate it if he said a few words to them,” Gibbs said, pointed to the ‘inmates’. “After all, he's Sean Steersman.”

  The Aliens

  Steersman was pacing up and down in his office. He couldn't concentrate on anything, besides the aliens. He thought only of them, and wracked his brains for possible explanations as to why they were here. What logic could explain the fact that he alone held the link or location or the mind necessary for communication. Obviously, his first and most natural reaction was to assume their presence was a threat, because it could be the start of rivalry between their species.

  While going over possible reasons for it all, he analyzed peaceful and hostile scenarios, but after a while it began to drive him mad; the anticipation, the waiting. From a scientific point of view, when he thought about it more calmly, he found the picture less disturbing. He assumed that they had perhaps experienced a similar planetary history to Earth, since the Big Bang – that had created the universe and started the processes that led to conditions necessary for life – had created the same probability for biogenesis everywhere.

  Sure, they may have been more fortunate, and the building blocks for life may have appeared sooner. But he did not feel that they were more developed. At most, their evolutionary development had perhaps taken a completely different direction, making them different rather than more advanced. Steersman tried to come to terms with that idea, and when he had successfully convinced himself that it must be the case, he felt that he was ready to meet them again.

  *

  This time, he found the blue-black darkness lurking elsewhere, but it was equally troubling, bubbling and writhing, as if it were about to explode. He touched the distant dark mass, causing it to collapse in on itself again. He had no idea what was happening to him, but one thing he was sure of was that the force pulling him in could only be some kind of raw elemental power.

  The movement stopped, leaving him in a horizontal position.

  There was no sense of impact. The feeling of moment simply ceased and he knew that he arrived. He looked around to where the creatures had been previously, but they were not where he expected them to be. They stood right in front of him, and a pulse of shocked surprise went through him at their unexpected proximity. This was unlike anything he had ever experienced. For a moment, he thought of moving back, defending himself somehow, but it felt ridiculous. He pulled himself together and stood up. They were no more than three meters away.

  Their entire body was now clearly visible. He was slightly taller than they were, but their upper torsos were far wider than his. From the inverted teardrop-shaped body protruded a number of arms. Steersman counted a total of four pairs, one behind the other, resting along the body. The aliens seemed to levitate with very precise propulsive organs that pulsed in waves, controlling the orientation and balance of their bodies. Their lower body slowly undulated like some kind of prehistoric sea creature, yet somehow far more sophisticated and incredibly expressive. Atop the trunk of their bodies sat their heads, only just distinct from their bodies, but which, amazingly, they were able to rotate. The dark flickering vibrations on their heads seemed to indicate speech, yet there was no sound.

  He watched them for a while, then felt the need to do something to avoid being pushed out in the same way it had been earlier.

  “Hello … I'm glad to meet you,” he said softly, the first ever words from a human to an alien species. They didn't respond to his voice at all, almost as if they had not even heard it, but their arms moved and Steersman could see that they were holding something that was flickering in the same way that heads were. Interestingly, although their heads and bodies seemed fused, they could turn their heads to an incredible degree with a fluid-like motion that allowed Steersman to easily follow the direction of their attention towards the devices. Then, he saw them focus their attention on him.

  Steersman felt a little uncertain. He suspected and hoped that this something had interpreted his words and translated it for them, but he wasn't sure.

  One of them left the group and began to float towards him. Steersman felt even more uncomfortable, unsure what to make of it.

  “Welcome, Delegate,” a voice spoke suddenly inside his head. There was no physical sound, just a presence in his mind. “We also are pleased to meet you.”

  He felt that he should feel uncomfortable at hearing them speak, but on the contrary, the idea that communication would be easier somehow reassured him. The voice was not unpleasant, though it was clearly artificially generated and resembled neither male nor female. It was completely androgynous.

  “I have so many questions that we may never reach the end,” he began.

  The heads turned and flashed, and the others joined their comrade, drifting closer to him. Apparently they were unafraid.

  “Do not worry, we don't have all of the answers either.” Oddly the voice seemed to convey a smile. “The most important thing is that you are here.”

  Steersman nodded. “Can we start at the beginning? I think I need to, so that I can understand all of this.”

  “Certainly,” said a second figure, vibrating to the right of the first. “As a matter of fact, our two civilizations differ in almost every respect, so I will try to talk to you in your own terms. We have no concept of time, which could prove most challenging,” the sound of the translation skipped a little. “Our planet is part of what we could define as a neighboring star system. It is the fifth planet in the system. Gravity is very low on the surface, yet our atmosphere is much denser than on your planet Earth.

  Fifteen thousand generations have come and gone on our planet, as there has only ever been one cataclysmic event causing extinction, unlike Earth which has had many. Unfortunately, we were not blessed by rich mineral or metal ore deposits, but when an asteroid collided with our planet, an event to which we owe our entire civilization, it brought us something that has provided us with the capacity for great technological development. A type of crystal. As a result of this, we are able to see further into the galaxy than any other species. The technology is based on supra-photon radiation, which travels as light does, but many times faster.

  With our space surveillance tools, we have developed a space mapping system over several thousand generations. We can determine the movement of objects in space with very high precision and thus their position. We can say with certainty that all objects in our galaxy are mapped in our directory, even those that have only just come into existence. Unfortunately, even with our high level of technology, we can only see over intergalactic distances with great difficulty, but developments are underway.”

  The voice fell silent, and St
eersman's face betrayed his utter amazement.

  “I would describe our civilization to you, but I suspect that you have already carefully studied it inside out,” he said, and to his real surprise they simply nodded. Perhaps they knew that a nod was a sign of approval in human conversation, but it might also have meant that he had found the first mutual communicative sign between the two species. “If I understand correctly, when you say that you are able to see further than any other species, you are, in fact, implying that other civilizations exist beyond ours.”

  “Yes, that's right. We have discovered traces of social development of at least one species on a total of 46 planets. On many planets, there are promising evolutionary developments, and we have found unintelligent life forms also, which have evolved purely for survival. There is one species with whom we do not wish to contact because of their rather unforgiving and violent nature, but we consider humans to be the only life form in the galaxy with who we could communicate effectively.”

  “How well do you know us?” asked Steersman, curiously.

  “This is the first time that we have met a human being. Our observations and conclusions are fundamentally based on how species treat each other within their own surroundings.”

  “On that basis, I'm not sure why you find us suitable,” observed Steersman, thinking of the horrors he had faced in recent times.

  “We were persuaded by those who have dedicated their infinite energy to making your world a better place. For this reason we selected a delegate. We decided that you were the one in a position to be able to use our radiation.”

  “What do you need me for? Why didn't you come here instead?”

  “We do not have such technology in our possession which allow us to leave the planet. Our planet is not as rich in raw materials as Earth. A delegate was required for us to be able to meet and share scientific knowledge with each other.”

  “You want to do business …” Steersman was openly surprised. “We are more similar in nature than I thought possible,” he almost was relieved.

  “We do not wish to do business. We offer possibilities in return for other possibilities that will allow us all to prosper. Together we are stronger.”

  “Barter is also just business, but it's much nicer form of business in a materialistic world. I think I now have some understanding of your intentions, and it has made things far more interesting. I appreciate your honesty, though, I suspect that it might be an integral part of your nature. Although, we have now made contact, I can't help feeling that the time when we'll look upon each other as neighbors is still rather distant.”

  “Time does not matter.”

  “Yes, you've said that there is no such thing amongst you. I don't understand how it is possible. Why is that?”

  “Because time is unreliable, because it can be influenced.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “Because the world – in which we live is made up of physical particles that allow to measure expansion in space and time – is affected by an external force to which everything responds in the same way. Due to the force of gravity the components of the physical world are bound by the same laws of physics in all dimensions. Gravity curves space because it attracts nearby objects more strongly than those further away; and it also bends time because anything that can be measured, like matter, living tissues, cells, is also subject to physical laws. Under strong gravitational forces, frequency slows and living cells age more slowly.

  Strong gravitational forces are traps from which it is very difficult to escape, because if there is no vibration, there is no movement and thus, there is no time. On our planet, gravity is not a constant force because the planet has five moons, meaning that we can not calculate time with it.”

  “All right, I guess. You must have had time …, I'm sorry, you must have had a number of generations to ponder on how you might trade with humans. For example, what could you offer? And what would you need?”

  “We do not wish to hurry you, or intrude,” said the third floating figure. “The first step in building a healthy relationship is for us to know each other, which can not just be based on remote observation. Firstly, we wish to get to know you. We wish to discuss the workings of trade relations with you. The key to our association is you, and how we build it will depend on you. There are many things that can be of use to us as a basis for exchange, primarily raw materials, but we can also discuss technological improvements or devices. In return, we can offer technologies based on our own scientific research. We are far more advanced and efficient in terms of navigation and communication compared to technologies that you are now using, but we can also offer you the opportunity to have access to our maps.”

  “So it's not important what we exchange, but rather how we do it, right? Whatever may will be, but not at any cost. So far, it sounds like a very fair offer,” said Steersman.

  “We are pleased to hear that. Very soon, you will need to return to your body. In a short time, you will begin your odyssey in space,” said the alien.

  “You mean the space fleet?” Steersman asked, surprised.

  “Yes, you are beginning your exploration of the galaxy, but it is not worth your while going just anywhere. We will give you coordinates that will give you a greater chance of finding what you seek.”

  “Raw material resources?” he said.

  “Yes. This means that you will be able to develop tools that will allow you to come to us. We will then give you the technology to establish a channel between our two worlds, thus greatly reducing the distance.”

  “I envy you,” Steersman said, after some thought.

  “Please explain your meaning.”

  “You have characteristics that I would be eager to possess; for example, you are unconcerned by time, yet I'm afraid that time on our planet is an incredibly dominant motivational force that affects everything. Time always seems to run out on our world.”

  “The key to that is in your hands,” said one.

  “And worry not. You have certain traits that we would also wish to possess,” flashed another. “Now go!”

  Then, as if the place had switched off, Steersman opened his eyes and was once again back in his office. His head didn't hurt and, in fact, he felt great. If possible, he now believed even more in what he had dedicated his life to. He had felt the need for such an affirmation, though, he would never have believed that extraterrestrial beings would be the source of that push.

  Space fleet

  For the first time in its existence, Excolopolis struggled to cope. An overwhelming huge influx of people, all of whom had come to see the space fleet, caused shortages in all conceivable ways. Over the preceding few weeks, there had been no hotel rooms available, no traffic allowed into the city, and in the last few days before the launch, not even standing room remained. The parks filled with spectators, the streets in every district of the city were flooded and overwhelmed by curious crowds, wanting to see one of the most ambitious inventions of all time.

  In the past ten days, endless convoys snaked between the area of the ASEC and the ships, while the aerial defense units, robot air shields and IRD squadrons from the nearest enforcement poles secured the area. This all served to create a spectacular air show over the metropolis, giving the city an air of expectant excitement.

  On the last day, the number of convoys declined and were supplanted by ASEC and IRD command vehicles. The crews had been familiarizing themselves with the vessel for two days, checking and rechecking systems over and over. Explanations for continued obsessive preparations were unnecessary because if anything could go wrong billions of kilometers from home, nothing and no one would come to their aid, and they would completely on their own. So technicians outnumbered scientists overwhelmingly.

  Karen arrived on board with Murinko and the space fleet commanders. They were followed by the group of executive chiefs responsible for directing the crew.

  The docking bay also functioned as a giant hangar, where hundreds
of smaller operational craft were lined up, each in its own dock. From there, distribution corridors lead into the main arteries, and as dictated by ASEC principles, none of them followed a symmetrical arrangement. On board the Carapace, not a single centimeter was left unused. Even in the hangar exits, space was given over to maintenance and supply storage. In extremely wide corridors, where cargo was still waiting to be sorted, colored lines indicated paths for traffic that were to be left free at all times.

  Automated transport pods ensured rapid and unimpeded travel through what was, after all, miles and miles of corridors. It had been clear from the start that the transportation system could not be left till last, as even at maximum permitted speed, it took roughly half an hour to travel from one end of the ship to the other, which would be painfully slow if there was an emergency. Yet, there had simply been not enough time to develop the system further.

  There were obviously no windows on board, but spatial effects were generated by gigantic ion-projectors built into the interior panels that displayed the view outside with such breathtaking clarity that it was indistinguishable from reality. It was simply enthralling, as if the ship opened out into outside world, giving an enormous sense of depth and reality, almost as if one were gazing out of huge panoramic windows.

  A massive oval room, intersected by several corridors, leading from its sides, served as a briefing room. Everyone was present, all 8,550 personnel, including those from the other two ships were there to be a part of the first briefing before the start of their voyage. The meeting had generated some pretty wild traffic among the three vessels as vehicles zoomed back and forth. Spectators down in the city had no idea what to make of the hundreds of aircraft suddenly racing from place to place. Many thought that perhaps a serious accident had happened until the frenzy began to slowly abate.