A Calm Mind

by Ruairí Cinéad Ducantlin

  A Calm Mind

  The Ptolemy Expedition

  Book Two of the Carina Series

  __________

  By

  Ruairí Cinéad Ducantlin

  Calm of Mind

  Copyright © 2018 by Ruairí Cinéad Ducantlin

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication is available to be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, by any means, without the prior written permission of the author.

  Disclaimer

  This is a work of fiction and provided exclusively for entertainment purposes. Which means the author made it all up with the hope of entertaining you, the reader. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination and/or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is entirely coincidental.

  Table of Contents

  Preface

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Excerpt from Our Place

  Character Profiles

  Crew Manifests

  About the Author

  Contact Ruairí

  Books by Ruairí

  Preface

  Is your reality flexible?

  R.C. Ducantlin

  Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. That is Clark’s third law. Which is an odd law because the definition of technology is straightforward. Technology is the practical application of knowledge. Where is the magic in knowing how something works?

  Building an interstellar spacecraft is the application of knowledge to technology. Building a spacecraft is not magic, it is hard work. The varied nature of the components required to build a spacecraft becomes its own, unique, collective technology. Oh, let us not forget, the application of knowledge to technologies must abide by the laws of physics. Newtonian physics. Without getting into the conservative laws of physics, for the Peregrination Coterie, Newton’s first and third laws do not apply.

  You read that correctly. Some of the laws of physics do not apply.

  The word peregrinate means to journey or trek, usually on foot. A coterie is a collective group of people who possess a singular purpose. Our group of adventurers, the Peregrination Coterie, has a singular purpose.

  Sir Isaac Newton’s first law of physics: Every object in a state of uniform motion tends to remain in that state of motion unless an external force is applied to it. Ugh… That means, objects in motion tend to stay in motion. Newton’s third law: For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

  Along the way, our Peregrination Coterie learned a valuable lesson: Humanity’s understanding of Newtonian physics has become flexible.

  If you had the knowledge and you possessed the ability, would you use dark matter to instantaneously teleport to another planet? If you had the technology to survive in the near vacuum of space, would you volunteer to spend days, weeks, or months in a technologically advanced composite tube called a spacecraft?

  This story is about how traveling FTL, Faster Than Light, not only became possible, it became common. This is a story about visiting new solar systems and meeting sentient beings. This tale requires applied physics and a great deal of confidence in the application of unseen forces. Unseen forces that ultimately alter and change our understanding of the universe. Traveling FTL is not the hard part.

  Staying alive is the hard part.

  I, therefore, encourage you to read on, let the imagery fall over you while you consider the implications of a) of interstellar travel and b) of new sentient beings. Or not. It is, as always, your choice. The story continues now.

  Prologue

  "...Nobody calls me Lebowski. You got the wrong guy. I'm the Dude, man."

  The Big Lebowski

  Michelle and the rest of the Peregrination Coterie enjoy soaring around in the Jenny, a scout ship with defensive armaments and a small cargo bay. Capable of interstellar travel, the Jenny is home to most of the Coterie.

  Lucinda Louise Raitt is the Captain of the vessel and her partner Nathan Tiberius Brooks, NT, is the Communications Officer. Lucinda and NT have been together for several years.

  NT is charged with chronicling the adventures of the Coterie. You are reading his chronicles of the Peregrination Coterie.

  The First Officer and primary navigator is Ragnar Olaf Jensen. His partner is Cassandra Rene Brady, PhD, who is assigned to the Jenny as the Cultural Liaison Officer. Ragnar and Cassandra have been together for a short time and are very quiet about their relationship.

  The Navigation Officer is Nickolas (Nick) Bertrand Davies. Janish Anika Roa is Nick’s partner and is the Jenny’s Science Officer. Nick and Janish are the backups for Ragnar at the weapons station.

  If the Jenny was a water-borne vessel, Bryan Symington would be Chief of the Boat. Thirty years in the United States Navy, the Chief doesn’t need a partner on the Jenny. His wife of twenty-eight years remains “on station” in Miramar California. The Chief takes his responsibility to ensure a smooth-running ship seriously. Everyone, including the captain, will defer to the chief when his advice is requested. If there is a change in duty assignment, or decision regarding the welfare of the Jenny to be considered, the chief’s opinion carries immense weight.

  The two remaining crew members are also partners. Michelle Raye Wilbon was given the title of Chief of the Galley. Being an excellent cook is not Michelle’s primary function. She is on the ship to support Corb Levi Johnson. More than a muse, Michelle was there when Corb gained the Summitate abilities.

  The best way to describe Corb’s role is: He is Earth’s Interstellar Ambassador.

  The Mayan Shaman, Yari and Ire, were the first to refer to Corb as the Enlightened One. Being the first “westerner” to use the Summitate ability to teleport was the beginning of Corb’s growth. When the Ch’en people of the planet K’an also used the title The Enlightened One, when referencing Corb, the extended Coterie and Earth’s leaders took notice. His ability to manipulate space-time shocked everyone. The Ch’en people honor Corb as a deity.

  The Garune people, of the planet Farmore, are split on the subject of ‘The Enlightened One’. Their governmental and secular leaders are skeptical while their religious leaders viewed Corb as the fulfillment of a millennia’s old prophecy.

  The remaining two members of the Coterie are Colonel Davinder (MNU) Khatter and Major Jan Willem Kruger.

  They are on Earth, at the compound in the West Virginia mountains. The compound was given a name: Q'eqchi'. Which is pronounced: Kek-chi. According to Cassandra, Q'eqchi' is nothing more than the name of the Mayan dialect spoken by Corb’s Mayan friends, the Shaman. Everyone considered the name honorific… so it stuck.

  Davinder runs the compound and is the Coterie’s point person on Earth. Jan is the second in command a
t the compound and is Davinder’s proxy in all matters related to the Coterie and Q'eqchi'. Davinder and Jan were two of the original members of the strike-team that is now the Coterie.

  Q'eqchi' is where the Coterie consider home when they return to Earth.

  For personal reasons, Davinder and Jan chose to remain on Earth. Neither have the desire to visit the stars and neither has made an overt effort to acquire the Summitate abilities.

  It is the Summitate abilities that allow the Coterie to traverse interstellar distances.

  First exhibited as the power to move small objects or as significantly increased mental abilities, the Summitate ability has matured. All the Coterie possess some level of Summitate ability. Not all can teleport. There are four people who can self-initiate a teleportation: Corb, Janish, Lucinda, and Vivian Lizza Treacher.

  Individually, the three Coterie leaders can teleport themselves and one, or two, others. Teleportation is initiated using an adjacent fabric of dark matter and is simple for the three leaders. Collectively, the three leaders, when in unison, are capable of far more than simple teleportation.

  Vivian Treacher has been exiled to the planet K’an where the Ch’en people ensure she is cared for and does not create harm to others.

  Communally, Corb, Janish, and Lucinda are on a rotating shift to “fly” the Jenny in the dark fabric. Referred to as the slip-stream, the dark fabric’s ability to move objects faster than light is analogous to the theoretical Alcubierre Warp tunnel. Something about a 110-kilohertz harmonic resonance causes the space in front of the Jenny to initiate a negative-mass bubble. Once the negative-mass bubble forms, the high-density mass is pulled forward to fill the negative-mass space. A harmonic wave is created causing the positive mass, within the local harmonic wave, to move and travel faster than light.

  Technically, the Jenny can create and enter the slip-stream without assistance from Corb, Janish, or Lucinda. However, they always monitoring the dark-mass tunnel to ensure the Jenny remains on course. Entering the slip-stream vortex requires the Jenny to become immersed in a blue-hued ring of collapsing plasma. The transition into the slip-stream is a few seconds of discomfort for the crew.

  Part One

  The Chaotic Mind

  Chapter One

  I’ve got ninety-nine problems,

  but this ain’t one.

  “Charity begins at home,

  and justice begins next door.”

  Charles Dickens

  Aboard the Marissa

  “Thank you, Senior Prefect Kale, we will ensure our future arrivals comply with your airspace regulations. We shall adjourn to discuss our visit and the greetings we bring to you from across the galaxy.”

  Captain Turner was lamenting the lack of information which led to the Marissa pilot’s confusion resulting in a violation of the Kripkeni air traffic control directives. The crew of the Marissa was sure they followed the rules provided. The humans knew Senior Prefect Kale was prone to complaining. The Marissa’s crew had grown accustomed to the prickly Prefect and took the frequent complaints in stride.

  The Marissa and the Jenny are the only interstellar capable spacecraft under Earth’s control. The Marissa is a lightly armored cargo hauler. She has been on a trade route between Sol and the Ch’en home world, K’an and the Garune home world, and the planet Kripkeni. It was the Ch’en who provided the technology to allow the Marissa to harvest hydrogen and helium from Jupiter’s atmosphere. In exchange for the helium and hydrogen, Earth receives new technologies, from the planet Garune.

  “We will meet when the sun rises.”

  With that, the main video monitor on the Marissa reverted to a view of the horizon of the planet named Kripkeni, but the Ch’en people called Farmore.

  “Well, that could have gone better.”

  “Don’t worry, Kale is an ass to everyone but is a decent guy to Corb.”

  “Brando, it took us nine months to build and install the holding tanks and the collection booms. Another three weeks to reach Jupiter and five more weeks to collect the hydrogen and helium. Seven weeks in the slip-stream. You would think they would be more grateful.

  The Jenny has been back and forth, between Farmore and Earth three times. Didn’t you give Captain Raitt updates?”

  “Of course, we updated her regarding the progress of the build and collection processes. Put yourself in their place, the Kripkeni could have built the tanks and collection booms in about three weeks. That is what they told me. They complain to me, and to Lucinda, about what they considered unnecessary delays but never to Corb. They need us, and they revere The Enlightened One. What they don’t have is the Marissa. Apparently, the Garune are not permitted to own large haulers. Corb says it is because they killed a planet once. Their exploration and mining privileges were revoked.”

  “Killed a planet? Revoked? By whom?”

  “Corb didn’t say. But, I suspect there is someone else pulling the strings. Someone other than the Ch’en. Someone much more powerful. We have about twenty-nine hours, then Kale will want us to dock and offload the tanks. He will probably send Kairn to supervise the offload. Farmore has a twenty-eight-hour, thirty-two-minute day. The air is breathable, but everything smells like a birdcage. Also, the gravity is ninety-two percent of Earth, it is easy to get around.

  When the offload is complete, I will get Lucinda and Janish to take us to Kaleville. Kairn’s brother owns a nice pub with good food and beer. Well, it is like beer. No, it is more like … you will see.”

  “Kaleville?”

  “Yeah, there is only one large metropolis and it is in the northern hemisphere. Because there is only one place we would call a city, there does not appear to be a name for the place. So, we called it Kaleville. You know, like Smithville or Louisville.”

  “They have bars?”

  “Brando, every civilization has gathering places. The Garune call them second home but they are pubs. Your next question is going to be: How are the people? You know what they look like. None are more than five-feet five inches tall, and none weigh more than ninety pounds.

  Cassandra is gathering information and history. There is an oral history of the Garune once being capable of flight. They claim their scales were feathers that have condensed over the millennia. Their hearing is unbelievable, and they hate that we speak audibly. Their lips are not pointy like a bird, or a beak like an octopus, but they are hard and very powerful. When they eat, they crush the outer shell of these pods then suck out the meat. It’s disgusting. No human is permitted to pay for anything. Correction, no human associated with the Enlightened One is permitted to pay for anything. They do not want to upset the Enlightened One.

  We have given Kairn’s brother items from Earth. Baseball displays. Photos from several Geographic societies. Religious iconography from all over Earth. He put them on display in his pub. The locals line up to get in and see the items.

  When Corb is in the bar they pack the place to get a view of the Enlightened One.

  Mostly though, they line up to see the Mayan artifacts. Cassandra sits for hours and talks to the locals about Mayan lore. The Mayans are not telling us something.”

  “What about the fight?”

  “Yeah, there was that. The backup pilot, on the second mission, a snotty little Russian, got into it with a local. A few blocks from Kairn’s brother’s pub. The Russian said he was set-up, but it always takes two. The Garune laws are severe.

  They were going at it full-on. The Russian, Parelov was his name, was small and feisty but the Garune was twice as fast. Parelov was getting sliced up by the Garune’s scales. Every time he got close enough to punch the Garune, the Garune’s scales turned hard and meshed together. The scales cut up Parelov’s hands.

  He was a mess when Corb teleported in to stop the fight. Corb still won’t say how he knew it was happening. He teleported right between them. When he appeared, the whole Garune audience fell to their knees and put their foreheads on the deck. Parelov was bleeding so badly Corb was worried
he would bleed out. After telling everyone to wait, Corb grabbed Parelov and put him in the sickbay aboard the Jenny. The Chief, Michelle, and NT helped while the medical lab robodoc sewed Parelov up. A couple of days later, when he could stand up, Corb had Janish teleport Parelov to the Marissa. He needed plastic surgery back on Earth to clean up his face.

  After putting Parelov in the medical lab, Corb went back to the location of the fight, everyone was exactly where he left them ten minutes before. He went to the guy in the fight and made him stand up. Kairn had landed in one of their hover vehicles and came over to where Corb and the guy were standing.

  Corb saved the guy’s life. Garune law would have put the guy to death, on the spot. There is no greater violation here than to disrupt the harmony. The fight was so vicious it qualified for a death sentence.

  Corb told Kairn there was more to be learned from the incident. Teaching the children, the correct ways of harmony, is more valuable than executing those in the fracas. Kairn said the fighter would be punished but not put to death. Corb promised to speak with the children.”

  “Children?”

  “Brandon, the children are humans. The rest of the sentients in this part of the galaxy think of humans as children.”

  “Whoa. That’s harsh.”

  “Look at it from their position Brando. We have been interstellar capable for about three years. They have been interstellar capable for millennia. Naturally, we are children in their eyes.”

  “That’s okay, children are often underestimated.”

  “Yes, Brando, I have a feeling these children are full of surprises. Have you heard the rumor about the nanobots and the artificial intelligence?”

  Chapter two

  Sweet corn and Bar-B-Que.

  “Adventure is not outside man; it is within.”