The Seasoning

by Dennis Ingram

  Of course, they’d originally planned to wait until the Hope reported back to Earth, but the outbreak of nuclear war had forced their hand, causing Edward to turn to one of the alternate branches of his master plan.

  The main branch had been to assume control of the political establishment on Earth. Before the holocaust, he’d already placed his people inside what passed for governments there, and through joint political and corporate power had been close to achieving his goal, of bringing order to the chaos of human organization.

  But his influence over Earth’s military forces hadn’t reached the level he’d needed. And if the military controlled nuclear weapons, and had a mind to use them, they could bring down Armageddon on everyone’s head.

  From what he’d been able to determine later, there had been an agreement between the major nuclear powers to “save” the planet, and humanity, by cleansing the planet of the over-breeding rabble. By doing so they’d bring on a nuclear winter that would buy them decades of precious time to head off the climate crisis.

  It was never a good plan. It was brutal, inhumane, and doomed to failure. Where nuclear weapons are concerned, no one trusts anyone else, and escalation from the “cleansing” plan to a full global nuclear exchange was not only possible, it was inevitable. The horrific results almost exterminated human life on Earth. For all Edward knew, it might even succeed in doing so in the long run. Life after the holocaust would be difficult. The best hope would be the underground facility he’d established in Greenland. For those left on the surface … he shuddered to imagine how life would be for them.

  Plan B had been to flee to Tau Ceti and start again. Tau Ceti had always been on the list for later; the war bumped it to first place. His second-in-command, Samantha Heyes had control of Mars. He could trust her, as her devotion to his vision almost matched his own. She understood; she could see the benefits of uniting everyone under one banner.

  Serendipity exceeded their expectations. Here, they’d found not only a well-established colony, but one with a habitat that could support several thousand people with little added effort, and a respectable industrial base. It was almost perfect. All that remained was to assume control, a step that must be simple, given the low population. After all, Edward had almost controlled the destiny of eleven billion people. What challenge could one hundred and thirty-three present?

  A small crowd had gathered at the construction site. Fearing a repeat of the previous day’s altercation, David went to investigate.

  “Dave! Come meet my new mate, Ernie!” John said, spotting him. He clapped an arm around an engineer David recognized from yesterday, the one who’d offered to help with the building.

  “Ernest Blackmore,” he said, holding out his hand. “My friends call me Ernie.”

  “Please to meet you, Ernie,” David said, shaking his hand.

  “They’re all engineers!” John enthused, waving at the group behind him, which also included Heidi and all of their apprentices. “Isn’t it great?”

  “I’m not sure,” David said, his face serious. “I think two of you are more than enough.”

  Ernie glanced at John, uncertain.

  “Ha, ha,” John said, used to David’s dry humor. “You don’t know how lucky you are.”

  “Probably not. So, you’re helping with the build, Ernie?”

  “He was,” John said, intercepting the question, “and the others are doing that right now. But Ernie and I, we’ve got another idea that’s even better.”

  “Oh?”

  “Tell him, Ernie!”

  Ernie cleared his throat. “Well, as you know, we designed our landers to carry people,” he said.

  David nodded. “Yes, they each have a stasis chamber built for twenty?”

  “Yep, that’s an improvement since the Hope. We not only found a way to make them bigger, they’re also much lighter and use less power than before. The landers are essentially a giant capsule wrapped around a stasis chamber.”

  “And you know how we haven’t been able to build one of our own …” John said.

  David nodded. A stasis chamber had been high on his wish list for a long time. To be able to store perishables indefinitely would be useful, but even more, he wanted the ability to time-skip, to stretch their short mortal lives over a longer elapsed time. Not because he wanted to live forever, but because he saw it as a way to compensate for their small population – knowledge and experience need not be stolen so swiftly by death. They could spread their lives across many generations and help their colony prosper and grow.

  But stasis chambers were tricky, and they hadn’t succeeded in building one yet.

  “… well now we can! Right, Ernie?”

  “Absolutely. Each lander still has a fully functioning stasis chamber. All we need to do …”

  “… is drag it over here and plug it in!” John finished for him.

  David smiled. John had found a new soul mate – they already finished each other’s sentences.

  “It’s that easy?”

  “Well, almost,” John said. “It still needs …”

  “… a kick-start,” Ernie finished. “We need an accumulator. The landers don’t have one, the ship provided the kick-start.”

  “Can we build one?” David asked.

  “Oh, sure, they’re easy,” John said. “I can get the fabricators on the job today.”

  “We just need you to give the OK,” Ernie said.

  David felt himself getting caught up in their enthusiasm. It did no harm, and they were offering him instant gratification – he’d get his stasis chamber within days.

  He ought to consider it, his brain was telling him, even as his mouth opened and said, “OK.”

  John grinned. “Come on, Ernie,” he said, clapping him on his back. “Wait until you see our rover. She’s a beauty!”

  Josh and Nigel were in their lab, heads bent over a computer screen, when the van Zyl family walked in.

  “Hi,” said Nigel, straightening up. “Kevin, isn’t it?”

  “It is,” Kevin said. “This is my family – Bianca, Daniel, Sasha, and James.”

  Nigel and Josh nodded. “Hi guys.”

  “You’re South African, aren’t you?” Nigel enquired. “I recognize the accent.”

  “Ja,” Kevin said, looking at Bianca.

  “We might be the last ones,” she said, her eyes distant.

  Nigel looked down. “Sorry, I wasn’t thinking. I suppose it must still be fresh for you.”

  Bianca nodded. “It seems like the day before yesterday.”

  Josh shook his head. “Sorry.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” Kevin said. “We’ll deal with it in our own way. But we didn’t come here to dwell on the past, we’ve brought something for you, for all of us.”

  “You have?” Josh said, brightening, eyeing the cases they each held.

  “Guys?” Kevin said, looking at his family.

  They lifted their cases onto the table and opened them. Two cylinders filled half of each case. They placed the cylinders in front of Josh and Nigel, taking care not to bump them. Josh and Nigel craned forward.

  “Are they …?”

  “We could bring twenty kilos each,” Kevin said. “We figured ten for us, and ten for the colony. When we thought about what we should bring, we decided the most useful thing would be seeds, cells, and embryos. So here they are.”

  Josh’s eyes sparkled and a wide smile split his face. He felt as if he’d just won every lottery ever!

  “What …?” Nigel asked. Neither he nor Josh seemed capable of using words with multiple syllables.

  Kevin handed over a data card. “There’s a complete manifest on here. We checked the list of cells you brought on the Hope and brought complementary samples. You’ll find other varieties of plants and animals you already have, plus some that fill gaps in your inventory.”

  “Gaps?” Josh asked.

  Kevin smiled. “We cross-checked your manifests against the mission requirements a
nd your interests. Two items in particular we thought you might lack and may be of immediate interest.”

  Josh’s heart missed a beat. “Did you–?”

  “Hops,” Kevin said, “and lemon grass.”

  Josh closed his eyes for a moment. “If you only knew how much I’ve missed a real Tom Yum Kung …”

  Nigel grinned. “I think you guys have just made a new best friend.”

  “Oh you have, you have! And when John and Heidi find out, you’ll be the heroes of Haven for as long as you live!”

  A little later, after the van Zyl family had left, another visitor came by, introducing himself as Professor Scott Brand. As soon as he walked into the room, his attention was caught by a display case containing the mounted skeleton of an unusual vertebrate. Its body was small, about the size of a cat’s, and symmetrical in shape, rather like a long, thin football. At one end was a mouth lined with razor-sharp teeth, and it had a total of six legs.

  “Is that a–” asked Professor Brand.

  “… squidge?” Nigel finished. “Why yes, it is.”

  Professor Brand’s nose was now against the glass.

  “Are you interested in extraterrestrial life, Professor?” Josh asked.

  The professor turned, his eyes gleaming. “Interested? I should say so! Exobiology is my life’s work, but it’s not easy when there’s no extraterrestrial to study! When I heard of your discovery, I came straight to your lab. I don’t suppose …?”

  “No,” said Nigel, getting to his feet and winking at Josh.

  Professor Brand’s face dropped.

  Nigel smiled. “I’m afraid you can’t handle that specimen. But there are plenty more that you can.”

  The professor nodded, his eyes bright again.

  Nigel opened a drawer beneath the display cabinet, revealing a selection of specimens lined up in neat rows. “Go ahead. There are thousands of them out there. You can have one of your own to do with as you please.”

  The professor picked up a skeleton, handling it as if it might shatter at the lightest touch. “It really is quite remarkable.”

  Nigel indicated a desk. “Why don’t you sit here?” he suggested. “I’ll get you some tools and a data pad.”

  The professor gently set the skeleton down. “I can really do as I please?”

  Nigel nodded. “It’s all yours.”

  Mia Kovalevskaya was packing up her tools after a hard day’s work at the building site, when she noticed an observer. A newcomer, a boy about her age, watched from the low barrier they’d set out to keep people at a safe distance. He was slim, with dark hair. Not bad looking, her subconscious whispered in the furthest corners of her mind. She looked down and focused on her toolbox before snatching another glimpse. He was still there, a shock of black hair falling over his pale face, blue eyes watching. She smiled, and he smiled back. Her heartbeat quickened, and she wondered what she should do next. The boy made that decision for her by vaulting the barrier fence and sauntering over.

  “S’up” he said.

  “Sup?” She blushed and looked down.

  “I’m Scott.”

  “Mia.”

  Scott tilted his head to one side. “Do you, er, I mean, have you been doing this long?”

  Mia looked up. “This? Oh, no. Only a few days.”

  Scott laughed, and Mia died a little inside. But why? Why should she care if this strange, foreign boy laughed at her?

  “No,” he said. “I meant building things. Anything.”

  “Oh,” Mia said, feeling foolish. “Since I was ten. That’s when we start our apprenticeships. I’m apprenticed to Uncle John.”

  Scott looked impressed, and Mia’s heart jumped a little.

  “Uncle John?”

  “The chief engineer.” She lifted her chin. “I’m going to be an engineer too.”

  “Huh.”

  “What’re you going to be?”

  He scratched his head. “Dunno. I haven’t thought about it much.”

  Mia frowned. “Who are you apprenticed to?”

  Scott rubbed his chin. “No one. That’s not the way we do it on Earth.”

  Mia paused for a moment. It hadn’t occurred to her there might be other ways. “So what do you do?”

  “I’m at school. Next I go to college. After I graduate from college, I’ll get a job, and earn some money.

  “Money? Oh yes, we learned about that. You used it to buy goods and services, didn’t you?”

  This time when Scott laughed, his eyes laughed too. “Man, things really are different here, aren’t they?”

  Mia frowned. “I don’t think so. They may have been different on Earth, though.”

  Scott’s broad grin transformed his face. “You know, I like you. Do ya wanna hang out?”

  “Hang out?”

  “Yeah, you know. Hang. Maybe you could show me the forest.”

  “Oh yes!” Mia’s face brightened. “There are big trees there, we can hang in those.”

  Scott nodded. He was starting to realize he wasn’t in Kansas anymore. “You know what, that’d be cool.”

  Mia opened her mouth to comment she didn’t think that was likely at this time of the day, but stopped as she realized nothing her new friend Scott said meant what she thought it did.

  “Yeah,” she said instead. “Cool.”

  Carla wiped her brow. It was hot here, and there was no air conditioning. Her wardrobe needed revising, she could see that.

  “Really, Edward, you should do something.”

  He didn’t lift his head. “I am doing something.”

  “I mean take action. The longer you wait, the more difficult it will be.”

  Edward looked up, eyebrows raised. “Why should it be difficult?”

  Carla sighed. Haven was taking some adjusting to, for all of them. Edward seemed unaware he needed to adjust too.

  “I’ve been out there, watching. Do you know what’s happening with your crew?”

  “I presume they’re getting themselves settled.”

  “Oh, they are, they are. What they’re doing is making friends with the colonists.”

  “Friends?” Edward repeated, face blank.

  “Friends,” Carla said with a nod. “Do you understand what that means?”

  Edward leaned back and folded his hands across his belly. “You mean they’re fraternizing with …”

  “… the enemy? Yes, I’m afraid they are.”

  Edward frowned. “I don’t consider the colonists to be enemies. They’re part of the plan.”

  “Which is?”

  “You know what it is,” he said, pressing his lips together. “We establish the new order here and return to Earth after we succeed.”

  “And why should they be willing to become part of your new order?” Carla asked, tossing her head.

  “It’s their job.”

  She slapped the desktop with her hand. “Edward!”

  He sat up. Carla leaned over, planting two fists on the desk and moving her face close to his.

  “Listen! We are not on Earth anymore! Don’t you see? No amount of money means anything here. You can’t expect people to just do what you want! Do you understand?”

  Edward remained still, looking at her as if he hadn’t thought of that. “Are you suggesting that – they may disobey my instructions?”

  Carla rolled her eyes and sighed with exasperation.

  “Edward, who have we brought with us? I’ll remind you,” she continued, not waiting for a reply. “We’ve brought six security people, mercenaries you hired. What do mercenaries want? Money! You’ve got lots of money, but what good is it here? And there’s all those engineers and scientists, remember them? Do you think they care less about money? They’re all out there right now, making friends and working with them!”

  Edward pursed his lips.

  “And there’s your passengers. Why you insisted on bringing them, I don’t understand. If I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a thousand times – you should have ditched
those no-hopers and brought an army instead. What use are they?”

  “They paid their fares.”

  “Useful at the time, but not now. If you felt bad about ditching them, you could’ve just given them their money back. It’s not as if you needed it anymore.”

  Edward sighed. “We’ve been over this. You know that wasn’t the issue.”

  “Oh yes,” Carla sneered. “The famous Harper honor. You said you’d bring them, so you must. Do you really think that bunch of self-indulgent assholes will be so grateful you saved their useless lives they’ll follow you wherever you go? I doubt it. I doubt it very much. Wake up, Edward, the world is changing under your feet.”

  Edward’s eyes blazed. “You forget yourself.”

  “Edward, I’m trying to help you! To help all of us! Don’t you see? You must act now, before it’s too late!”

  “I’ll take it into consideration.”

  Carla straightened up, sighed and turned to leave. “You do that,” she said, tossing the words over her shoulder.

  Mia picked her way through the tent city, to her eyes an exotic place with new sights and sounds and smells, and so many people.

  She found Scott outside his tent, his head bobbing up and down.

  “Scott?”

  He didn’t seem to hear her, so she stepped closer. He looked up and smiled.

  “Hey!” He reached up and pulled a small plug from one ear.

  “What’s that?” she asked, frowning.

  “Hash metal. It’s totally jacked!”

  Mia ran a hand through her hair. “Hash metal? Jacked?”

  “Here.” Scott offered her the earplug, urging her to take it, placing it in her hand. “Try it,” he said, indicating she should put it in her ear.

  Mia placed the plug into her right ear and heard a deep, throbbing, driving beat overlaid by a harsh steel rag rhythm. People sang, or perhaps chanted over the top of the music.