Colony (Terran Chronicles Book 3)

by James Jackson

  Walker shakes his head in disagreement, “A well run ship requires an established chain of command, and this,” he waves his arm across the room, motioning toward Lisa and Johnny, “is not it.”

  Cindy purses her lips, then responds, “Your job, is planetary security, mine is this ship.” She glances at George, and says, “Well, he’s your pick, you deal with him.”

  Walker frowns in confusion, “What do you mean, George’s pick?”

  George takes one step toward the General, then says, “I want you here, because I believe that you’re made of the right stuff.” He smiles, then motions to the stars, “You really have no idea what’s going on out there, and we may need people like you one day.”

  Walker glances at the screen, his frown deepens, “So what did you folks skip in your reports?”

  George glances at the bridge crew, then replies, “There is a war going on between a number space faring civilizations, one that has been waged for thousands of years.”

  Walker shakes his head and sighs, “I gathered that from your statements.”

  George continues, unfazed by the interruption, “The Gamin are losing, and the Kord seem to be fairing no better.”

  Walker motions to the window, “But that’s all happening tens of thousands of light years away. Besides, what are we to do about their conflict? It doesn’t concern us, so we should just stay out of it.”

  George shakes his head, “My parents fled Europe because of its wars. They went to America, thinking it was safe, it was not. General, we can’t bury our heads in the sand, and hope we won’t be affected.” He stares at Walker for a few seconds, then says softly, “We’re already involved in this interstellar war, we just don’t know it yet.”

  Walker frowns at the odd statement, “What do you mean, we don’t know it yet?”

  Noticing that tensions on the bridge are building, Peter stands up, then adds his thoughts. “General, you say that we should stay out of it, while at the same time, we’re standing in an alien spaceship born of the very same conflict!”

  The General is about to respond, when a chill runs through his body. His jaw slackens, “You’re right, we’re already caught up in it.”

  George steps from his suit, then walks over to the General, “We became involved, the minute the Gamin chose our planet for their fleet’s repair and resupply.”

  Radclyf looks up from his chair, catches the General’s eye, and nods respectfully. Hayato smiles at the silent gesture, as it is his way, more than his friends.

  The mood on the bridge swings back to a more relaxed one, allowing Cindy to focus on the task at hand. “Okay everyone, let’s get down to business.” She looks around the bridge, until she has everyone’s undivided attention. She has been considering her options for quite a while now, which allows her orders to flow easily and confidently. “Emma, select a ground survey team. Initially, I only want one team on the planet at a time. Even then, we will make sure there are at least three shuttles circling at all times, keeping a careful lookout for wolf-cats.” She turns to Barbara, “I want you to go with the initial team. We need to determine where we can set up the first ground based radio telescope. While you’re on the planet, we will begin to lay our satellites in orbit.”

  Walker’s head snaps up at her words. Cindy smiles at him, “No, they are not Gamin satellites, but they are powered by the same solar panel technology.” Cindy then turns to Joe, “Feel free to test the Gamin communications module anytime you want.”

  Patrick nervously shifts his weight from one foot to another as he waits to find out why he was included in this meeting. Finally, Cindy turns her attention to him, “Patrick, you are also to go with the initial survey team. I want you to determine the best location for the wind generators we brought with us.”

  George glances around, slightly befuddled, being left out is not something he is used to. Cindy smiles at George, “And you sir, can spend time with your family, ‘cause once we get started, I don’t think you’re going to get a break.”

  Early Days

  Emma steps nervously from the shuttle, her nerves are not from fear, but more from the excitement of the days ahead. She takes a deep breath of the planet’s cool, dry, air, and relishes in its freshness. She, like the rest of her crew, wears a light jacket, long pants, and heavy duty boots. They carry small backpacks filled with a variety of items that each person deems essential.

  Feeling the slight warmth from the sun, Emma looks up, and smiles, could almost be on Earth, she thinks, hmm, except for the two moons in the sky. She stares intently at the space between the moons, and imagines that she can see the Terran.

  Peter steps from the shuttle, then looks around cautiously. The knee high grass, though sparse, could easily conceal all kinds of dangers. He stands still, listening and looking, his senses fully alert. He casts his gaze upon the outlying tree line, then toward the distant mountains. Though he can hear the river flowing nearby, he cannot see it through the grass.

  Emma breaks Peter’s focus, “Hey, relax will you, it’s not like we haven’t been here before.”

  Peter suddenly realizes that other members of the survey team have been walking around him, offloading equipment, while he blocks the base of the shuttle’s ramp. He offers Emma a sheepish smile, and assists with the unloading. Stepping from the shuttle with a case in each hand, he stops, then watches Emma, Barbara, and Patrick, as they point toward the distant mountain peaks. A swelling of pride fills his chest when his eyes fall upon Emma.

  A small team of planetologists gathers soil, air, and water samples, while yet another group focuses on cataloguing the nearby plant life. Additional shuttles fly in ever expanding circles around the ship on the ground, keeping the ground teams in sight at all times. These small handpicked groups of specialists are but a fraction of the one hundred-twenty people in Emma’s crew.

  As the hours tick by, it becomes clearer and clearer that this area between the mountain peaks, is an oasis. There are no buffalo like creatures, nor wolf-cats, though the pilots circling above do report signs of animal life.

  Peter walks a short distance, then stops, the knee high grass brushes against his calves. Standing perfectly still, he listens and watches once again. A few minutes pass by before he hears, then begins to see, the smaller life forms he expected to find. Small bugs fly back and forth from one grass stem to another. One lands on his shoulder, its dark color a stark contrast to his light tan shirt. He stares at the small insect-like creature curiously. Its body consists of two segments, the lower one has a half dozen legs, along with a pair of flimsy looking wings. The forward section has four legs and a small spike which begins to protrude from its mouth area. He quickly flicks the bug away, thinking, damn blood suckers, then swats at two more that land on his legs. Something slides through the nearby grass, heading away from him. He peers intently in the direction of the noise, trying to catch a glimpse of whatever it is. Eventually the noise is gone, leaving Peter alone with the small flying bugs.

  The hours turn into days as each plant, insect, and animal, is categorized. The nearby forests have the same monkey-like, tree climbing animals as those near the original camp, while strange birds that defy capture, fly overhead. Emma has been so busy working, she has had little chance to do any real exploring herself, much to her disappointment.

  During these early days, most of the Terran’s crew stays on board under strict orders from Cindy. George takes advantage of his unexpected downtime, and spends it with his family.

  Johnny looks up from his pancakes and once again begs his parents, “Please, just let me go down to the planet and look.”

  George glances at his wife, then replies, “Son, I can’t.”

  Johnny pleads, “C’mon, I know if you ask, it’ll be okay”

  George smiles at Johnny, “Not until the scientists say it’s safe.”

  Lisa has been wondering about the unexpected precautions herself, “Why the fuss? You guys practically lived here, and for a lot longer than a f
ew days.”

  George was not expecting his wife to question Cindy’s orders, but he responds, “We stayed in a different area, where there is less moisture, and the grass is not as tall. This new site also has a lot of insect life we didn’t encounter last time.” He looks down at his plate, and does not mention Emma’s real concern. Those spores that nearly killed us, came from somewhere. All bets are on the planet we’ve named Tropicanus being the source, but Emma doesn’t want to take any chances.

  Lisa frowns, she knows George is hiding something, but assumes he is being quiet because Johnny is with them. She catches George’s eye, and smiles, the all knowing smile that says, we will talk later!

  George nods, then ruffles Johnny’s hair, “Do you want to mess around in the zero-g room for a while?”

  Johnny can’t believe his luck, “Wow, for sure,” he replies.

  After the two of them leave, Lisa sits alone for a while. Exasperated with doing nothing, she heads off to find Cindy, she wants some answers. Lisa finds her on the bridge, sitting in the command chair, and strides up to her.

  Cindy looks up, and asks curiously, “Lisa, what can I do for you?”

  Lisa surprises her when she responds with all seriousness, “When are we going down to planet?” Her outburst continues unabated, “We have been sitting here in orbit for days!”

  Cindy stares at Lisa for a few minutes, while she decides what to say. She chews on her lip for a few seconds, then responds cautiously, “Last time, we found our analysis equipment insufficient for the task at hand,” she smiles warmly at Lisa, hoping to disarm her frustration, “This time though, we knew exactly what to bring, and I am going to let the specialists have all the time they need.”

  Lisa sighs, then turns her gaze out the main view, “I’m bored, and with my two children playing in that zero-g room, I have nothing to do, that’s all.”

  Cindy stands next to Lisa, and smiles at her referring to George as one of her children. She puts a supportive hand on Lisa’s shoulder, “I know, but we all have to...”

  The bridge speakers crackle to life, interrupting the two women, “Cindy, I need you in medical. Now!” Henry’s voice sounds both urgent, and alarmed.

  Lisa and Cindy turn to each other, both feel a chill run through their bodies.

  New Earth, New Dangers

  The flu-like illness spreads quickly throughout the ship, passing from person to person with alarming rapidity. Emma and Henry are overwhelmed, as is the entire scientific and medical staff. Cindy’s history of genetics comes in handy, until she too, falls prey to the debilitating condition. Hundreds of people lay on their beds, and although no one has died, yet, they all exhibit similar symptoms. Elevated temperatures, hot and cold sweats, fluid build-up in the victim’s lungs, and lastly, dysentery. A ship wide quarantine goes into effect, but it’s too late. New cases are reported hourly, from all areas of the ship, including Lisa who now lies on her bunk, drenched in sweat. George does his best to care for her while he diligently watches Johnny for any symptoms.

  Down in the medical bay, things are getting worse, doctors and nurses quickly fall prey to the illness. Henry takes his eyes off Cindy, who lies on one of the few beds in the medical bay, then stares into his microscope one more time. His vision begins to fade, and his legs threaten to buckle beneath him. He shakes his head, then weakly calls out to Emma, “I don’t get it, you and Peter both show signs of infection, and yet you’re unaffected, while others are bed ridden from the briefest of contacts.”

  Peter sits nearby, healthy, and yet he is covered in little red bumps where the flying bugs have landed and pricked his skin. He shrugs his shoulders as yet another nurse checks his temperature, blood pressure, and then takes a fresh blood sample. He says with an exasperated tone, “I keep telling you, this is not a virus, it’s more like a disease, like malaria.”

  Henry shakes his head, “Then why didn’t we run into this last time we were here?”

  Peter stands, then looks at his hands, “Well, I don’t recall those flying bugs, nor did we stray far from our settlement last time.”

  Cindy mumbles something unintelligible while she weakly waves an arm. Henry walks over to her, bends his ear to her mouth and listens. She says weakly, “Isolated environment, we just got lucky.”

  Henry stands up and frowns, lucky, is she kidding? A chill suddenly runs through his body, she’s right! We have hundreds infected, instead of thousands. He slowly scratches his head while he thinks, even the ship’s life support systems haven’t stemmed the spread of this... he suddenly turns to look at Peter, disease? The thought causes him to reconsider the way he has been looking at the illness. His aching body, and throbbing head prevent him from thinking clearly.

  The next morning George walks into the medical bay. Doctors and nurses are alarmed to see Johnny holding his hand. George waves them off, “If he was going to catch this thing, he would have done so already. Lisa kissed his forehead that first night she came down with it.”

  George gazes around, a frown forms on his brow, “Where’s Henry?”

  A nurse motions to nearby table, she says, “He collapsed last night.”

  “Damn,” George says in annoyance, “I have been racking my brain over this, and can’t figure out a solution.”

  Johnny squeezes George’s hand, then says, “I think Miss Cindy wants you.”

  The nurse and George both look over to see Cindy sitting up on her bed. She points at Johnny, and murmurs something. The nurse walks over, then listens to Cindy’s almost inaudible words.

  The nurse turns to face Johnny, “I need a sample of your blood, young man.”

  George’s eyes narrow protectively, “What did she say?” He says nodding at Cindy.

  The nurse smiles, then says, “Let me take a sample, run a few tests, then we will know if Cindy’s theory holds.”

  George looks past the nurse, at Cindy, who even manages a weak smile for him. He then looks at Peter, who simply shrugs his shoulders. Neither man can figure out the connection Cindy has made.

  The tests on Johnny seem to take an eternity. All George can do is watch as his son is poked and prodded by the ambitious medical staff. The handful of remaining doctors and nurses focus intently on their equipment. Finally, after three hours, a tired looking doctor steps away from his work area. He holds in his hand a half filled syringe, which he takes over to Cindy, then injects her with its contents. He and the nurse monitor Cindy closely, taking fresh blood samples and readings every fifteen minutes. Meanwhile, the remaining staff continues to churn out more of the potential vaccine.

  An hour passes by before Cindy’s fever breaks, her body temperature steadily drops back down to normal levels. A nurse looks up from her computer, then calls out from her desk, “she’s cured!”

  George, who has been very patiently waiting says, “Okay, so what’s the cure?”

  Cindy lifts a hand, and rasps, “testosterone and adrenaline.” She reaches for a cup of water, then gulps it down. Weakly pointing at Peter she says, “You were scared for Emma’s safety, thus your adrenal gland was,” she pauses, as she tries to find the right words, then simply says, “busy.” She smiles at Johnny, “And you, young man, are entering puberty, and had been competing in the zero-g room against your father.”

  Peter looks at Cindy questioningly, “If it’s just adrenaline or testosterone, then why are so many infected?”

  Cindy shakes her head from side to side, “No, it has to be both, and you sir, just like many soldiers, have a naturally high level of testosterone.”

  George nods his head and adds, “And my suit was able to protect me.”

  Cindy nods weakly, “Exactly, now if you don’t mind, I would like to rest for a while. This thing has kicked my butt.”

  Peter glances at George, then says with conviction, “I wasn’t scared you know, just concerned.”

  George walks over to Peter, and whispers, “Don’t worry, your secret is safe with me.”

  Johnny looks up at both
men, “So mom will be okay now?”

  One of the nurses looks up from her desk and answers for the men, “It looks like it, but we will have to run some more tests, just to be sure.”

  Johnny glances from George to Peter, then says, “Well, since I am immune to this thing, can I go to the planet now?”

  George smiles, then ruffles Johnny’s hair, “The next time I go down, you can come with me.”

  Johnny’s face beams with excitement, “Sweet!”

  Peter shakes his head, kids! Glad I don’t... his thoughts trail off when it dawns on him that Emma may have a different view about children. The very idea of being a parent scares him more than anything else he has faced.

  Hawking is Born

  Medical teams run every plant and animal specimen they have through an exhaustive analysis process. Atmosphere and water samples are also examined, down to the microscopic level. Each newly discovered bacteria is run through a gamut of tests, before either being deemed safe, or not. The medical team, with Cindy’s assistance and approval, finally develop a vaccine against the harmful elements of New Earth. They test, then retest, this vaccine on ever expanding groups as they await results.

  As soon as Cindy is able, she gets John to take her, Emma, and a small team of specialists, to their original site. They land in a field near the collapsing walls of the old settlement. Mindful of the nearby wolf-cats, the group spends hours looking for the small flying bugs.

  Cindy turns to Emma and shrugs her shoulders, “There are none here, just not enough moisture in the ground, I guess.”

  Emma casts her gaze around the area with appraising eyes, “This area is different in many ways, lower moisture levels, reduced humidity, and cooler.”

  By the end of the afternoon, the group is finished sampling and cataloging. They return to the Terran to complete their tests.