Helium 3: Fight for the Future

by Brandon Q. Morris

  Phew, she lucked out again, Kimikizu thought. So much excitement this morning, and that was only breakfast. What did the rest of the day have in store for her?

  Kimikizu yawned, opening her beak up wide. Spending the night on the lounger seat had been strange. Nobody had sat beside her to swaddle her in the soothing sounds of their sleep. The Explorers had to be lonely beings. She looked at her face in the mirror and wiped away a splash of breakfast. She had just relieved herself on the roost. There was even a special shower with warm water for their sewers. The washroom in the flying machine was more comfortable than what she’d been accustomed to on the mother ship.

  “Orbit in fifteen minutes,” announced a speaker that must have been hidden in the ceiling.

  Kimikizu turned and opened the door, then pattered back into the ship’s cockpit. A serene calm still prevailed there, although everyone except Norok was already wearing all of their equipment, the suit that covered the body up to about the middle of the wings, helmet, and beak attachment. The Iks did not look especially elegant like this. Their bodies looked stumpy, and their beaks appeared strangely thickened. The proportions just weren’t right anymore.

  But such thoughts were of no help. Even if her sense of aesthetics was violated, she wouldn’t be able to exit the craft without the protective suit. At least she didn’t have to hide her beautiful wings. Their outer parts consisted of durable substances that tolerated heat and cold. She could even put out a blazing fire with the tips of her wings without getting hurt.

  All it took was five minutes, and then she was barely distinguishable from the others. Everyone took their places, and Norok started suiting up. The Supreme Explorer took his time. Evidently it was normal for him to radiate calm and serenity.

  It worked. Kimikizu remained calm, even when the automatic system announced that they’d entered orbit. Then the machine turned against its flight direction and braked full-force. The radius of the orbit decreased noticeably. On the screens, Kimikizu could see how the countless craters were getting bigger and bigger.

  The planet they were approaching was not a beautiful one. It was scorched because of the proximity to its star, its surface covered with dust and pitted with countless crater scars. Life couldn't exist here. Water ice could be found only in some deep craters close to the poles. Kimikizu thought that if planets could have feelings, this one would be happy to break free of its sun. They’d just be helping it out.

  Since the planet had no atmosphere, the flying machine could not use its wings and had to land in rocket mode. It wasn’t technically a problem, but it was uncomfortable for the passengers. It was possible to rotate the seats by 90 degrees, but the rooms were not designed for vertical landings.

  “Prepare for landing,” Norok ordered.

  On the screen above her, Kimikizu saw that they would be arriving in three minutes. At that moment, she and her seat made a quarter-turn. At the same time, the flying machine adjusted for a rocket landing. The engines were now only firing to counteract the gravitational pull of the planet. At some point, the automatic system must have released a drone, because Kimikizu was able to track the ship’s transformation by watching one of the displays. The two wings folded around the feet, and a third leg emerged from the crest of the ship. And so it descended, wingspan by wingspan.

  Suddenly there was a banging sound, and a deep rumble went through the ship. Kimikizu had not been paying attention to the altitude display and could hardly believe it. They were already on the planet. She had imagined a more spectacular landing.

  “Get to work, everyone,” said Norok. “We don’t have any time to lose.”

  Inside the ship, it was too narrow for them to spread their wings, so they had to awkwardly climb down the chains hanging from the walls. Unaccustomed as she was to moving in this way, Kimikizu was quickly out of breath. She really needed to strengthen her leg muscles!

  Finally she reached the lowest level, where the airlock was located. Several Iks were scurrying around, and Kimikizu felt a little lost until somebody touched her wing. She recognized Lashok, the one who had brought them breakfast, and was happy to see a familiar face.

  “Did you figure out what the cook had hidden?” he asked.

  “Norok guessed azure rice,” she replied.

  “Of course there’s no fooling the Supreme Explorer,” said Lashok. “My guess would have been blue rice.”

  Kimikizu moved her beak back and forth evasively. She had never had blue rice or azure rice before. But she had already heard of young Iks getting one another to prepare blue rice on a dare. For Lashok, youth was not as distant a memory as it was for her.

  An Iks she didn’t know asked her, “Do you have something to do?”

  “No,” she answered truthfully.

  “Good. We need carriers for the drill.”

  “What do I have to do?”

  “Just come out and you’ll see.”

  The Iks pulled at her shoulder toward the airlock.

  “I’m coming with you,” Lashok said, and followed her. “Right now there’s nothing to do in the kitchen.”

  The outer airlock door opened slowly, and the breathing air escaped. Shivering, Kimikizu pulled her wings in close. There was no objective reason for this, since the suit kept her body warm. It had to be a reaction to the landscape that spread out before her. The planet's surface was so utterly different from what she had seen in pictures of the home world. It was a landscape of contrasts. Where rays from the white sun hit the ground, she saw a light gray interspersed with darker spots. But in places where the rays didn’t reach, there was only blackness, a deep and impenetrable darkness.

  She immediately tried to come up with an explanation. The planet had no atmosphere that could diffuse the light from its star to reach the shadows. Here, the play of light and shadow was all or nothing, while there had been gradations on the home world. The explanation was one thing, while the impression of this landscape was another. She just couldn’t shake her amazement.

  Until an Iks pushed her off the platform from behind— perhaps it was an accident. She’d remained standing right outside the airlock door, and anyone stepping out after her while not paying attention could have easily bumped into her. It took Kimikizu a moment to get her bearings, suddenly glad this hadn’t happened to her on the home world where gravity was so much stronger. Even though there were only six or seven spans to the hard ground, she managed to spread her wings.

  The spacesuit then activated the propulsion unit, and suddenly the power of the rocket engine propelled her forward vigorously. She quickly realized that she could control the wings by maneuvering them with precision. Whoever had designed this suit had done a great job. Flying felt intuitive—it was as if she were gliding along on a stream of warm, rising air. She needed almost no strength to do it.

  With a happy squawk, she propelled herself upward into the air. Then she saw a large group of Iks gathered around a machine and remembered why she had passed through the airlock in the first place. She tucked in her wings, darted downward, and landed elegantly behind the group.

  Kimikizu was about to offer her help when an Iks in a spacesuit waved to her. She waved back. Was it Lashok? Up close, she realized it was Norok, the Supreme Explorer. He stood there like a regular Iks amidst the others, with a thick cable around his body.

  He pointed to his helmet. Of course. She had to activate the radio. She tapped the switch on the outside of her helmet with her gloved finger.

  She heard Norok’s voice. “You’d better take hold of the support cable, like me.” He pointed with his wing behind him, where there was still a spot. She slipped between him and the next Iks and lifted the cable onto her shoulder as they had already done.

  Then she saw what he’d meant. In the middle was a very heavy-looking machine, probably the drill, nestled in a net. This net was supported by a closed cable that the 50 or so Iks surrounding it had looped around themselves. It was an almost-symbolic idea—they would rise as a flock and, wi
th combined strength, carry the drill to where it was needed.

  Before long the command was given and a flock of Iks rose into the air. Kimikizu had never flown in such a large group. It had been impossible in the ship.

  The cable dug into her shoulder. The drill was very heavy. The net in which it was embedded pulled tightly, and they had to struggle hard. Then the drill lifted from the ground, and someone announced the direction they were to take. Kimikizu had no idea who it was, but it didn’t matter. She just followed the others.

  She was elated. She had never once experienced the strength of working together as a flock. She imagined how she and all her kin would push through the layers of the gas giant’s cloud. The Iks would spread to every single planet of this system. They would have all the time in the world because the local sun still had at least five billion cycles ahead. The Supreme Leaders had, in fact, found a paradise.

  The others were flying closer to the surface now and she followed suit. Shortly after, the weight vanished from her shoulders. The drill had reached its destination. Everyone landed wherever they found a space, and freed themselves from the cable. Specialists were responsible for the rest of the work.

  Kimikizu found herself a place on a nearby hill and from there watched her fellow Iks as they tinkered about. Over the radio, she learned that there were large solar panels to provide the drill with energy.

  Finally, it was time for Norok to turn it on. Its high-density bit now drilled into the ground, pulling the end of the anchor cable with it. The drilling would be finished early the following morning. They were hoping to reach a depth of at least 200 wingspans. The hole would then be closed with a liquid mass that would harden very quickly under the local temperatures and anchor the cable securely.

  Two Opinions

  The 20 ships entered an orbit around the fifth planet, maneuvering between its many moons. On the large main screen, Kasfok could see the billowing bands of clouds that were typical of this type of world. Violent storms ravaged the atmosphere, which consisted mainly of hydrogen and helium, along with traces of methane and ammonia.

  The asteroid ship has released a pod, reported the remote scout Holmak. His middle legs involuntarily twitched a brief dance of worry, and Kasfok smelled a cloud of agitation. It’s taking a direct course for the inner planet and seems to want to land there.

  Kasfok’s mandibles trembled with annoyance. What could the aliens want on such an inhospitable planet? Establishing settlements on its surface was unthinkable. Its orbit was far too close to its sun, and the enormous temperature fluctuations between day and night made survival there almost impossible. Could there be resources on the planet that they urgently needed? No, he thought. Any raw material the aliens might need would be much easier to mine from one of the other planets, or one of the countless asteroids in the belt between the inner and outer planets, just like in so many of the known solar systems. He couldn’t see their purpose in sending a pod to the surface of this scorching planet, which worried Kasfok even more.

  It was time to make a decision.

  Shipmaster Tolkut was also concerned. Doubly concerned, in fact. He was worried not only about the aliens, but also about how Netmaster Kasfok would react to their presence in the system.

  The asteroid ship was enormous, having just about the same diameter as a small planet. The cylindrical spaceships of the Mendraki, which were about 2,000 body lengths long and half as thick, looked puny in comparison.

  At its widest, the slightly spherical asteroid’s diameter was more than 400 times greater than that of the Mendraki fleet, and its volume was approximately 10 million times their total volume. Even if 90 percent of the asteroid was solid rock, the available living space inside would still exceed that of the Mendraki in their 20-cylinder ships by a factor of one million.

  Therefore, it was conceivable that the generational ship could accommodate several million inhabitants. It was also possible that it harbored pods bigger than any ship in the Mendraki net fleet. Kasfok would have to be crazy to seriously consider messing with the aliens.

  Stable orbit reached, reported the Bud’s threadfinder.

  The radio drummer cut in. Incoming call from Netmaster Kasfok!

  Put him on the general line, ordered Tolkut. He wanted not just the bridge crew but everyone aboard the Bud to hear what the Netmaster had to say.

  The image of the old Mendrak appeared on the main screen. His six eyes stared at the camera, and his mandibles jutted forward in an expression of the highest authority. His two communication legs rested on the thread and started to drum the message. It only took a fraction of a micropulse to translate the vibrations into electrical signals, emit them, and transmit them as vibrations on communication lines to all the fleet’s ships. Any Mendrak who put his leg on one of the threads running through any of the ships could feel the message.

  Mendraki Warriors! Kasfok pounded onto the thread. We have reached a decisive moment in our history. After losing our homeland, wandering thousands of light-years over the course of the past generations, seeing many of our ships destroyed, and mourning the deaths of countless Mendraki from encountering another species a long time ago, our future in this system will now be decided.

  Kasfok paused and danced a few steps of determination. His mandibles extended even farther forward as a sign of aggression.

  This system is our future! We will not let anyone take it away from us! The other ship may appear large and powerful, but it’s nothing more than a hollowed-out asteroid. Its size doesn’t mean anything. The technical data we have available so far has shown that the aliens are inferior to us technologically. They have neither an FTL drive nor weapons systems that are more advanced than ours. And above all, they don’t have the courage, determination, and combat readiness that have always distinguished the Mendraki.

  Kasfok paused again.

  And, that cost we Mendraki our home planet, Tolkut added silently.

  Kasfok came closer to the camera. His mandibles protruded aggressively, nearly touching the lens. The aliens still seem to be interested only in the inner planet. They can have it! However, I’m concerned that it was the four gas giants that brought them here. The analysis of the streams of their engines’ exhaust has shown that they also derive their energy from helium-3 fusion. But I claim these four planets for we Mendraki. This system and its treasures belong to us! If the aliens dare send their feelers out for these planets, we’re going to fight them.

  Kasfok danced a few steps of warning.

  At first, Tolkut was unsure for whom this warning was meant, but the subsequent vibrations of the thread made it unmistakably clear.

  There may be some among us who believe that it’s possible to reach an agreement with the aliens, even if they also want to harvest the helium-3 supplies. There may be those who argue that there is enough for all of us, and that the quantities available from the four gas giants are inexhaustible. But let them be told that this is a dangerous misconception.

  We don’t know anything about the aliens, except that they have a generation ship where many millions of them may be hiding. The species may be aggressive and deny us access to the much-needed energy reserves in the atmospheres of the four planets, or even wipe us out without hesitation.

  In the interior of the asteroid could be tens of millions of potential enemies. Enemies who will lead to our demise! We can’t afford to take any risks. To protect ourselves, we need to take preventive action. Even if they don’t appear aggressive right away, they’ll take the opportunity to inevitably crush us with their far superior numbers, push us aside, and make supplicants of us.

  This must not happen! We Mendraki will never become the supplicants of another species, even if our survival depends on it. The current data shows that we are technologically superior. We are under the assumption that the aliens have not yet discovered our fleet. We will know how to use this to our advantage should they move on to the four gas planets. In this case, there is only one course of action—we w
ill attack and destroy the aliens! We are Warriors. We will never submit to another species!

  Kasfok danced the steps of determination. Anyone who stands in the way of this is a traitor to the Mendraki and will share the fate of the aliens!

  The picture went dark, and the vibrations of the communication thread subsided. Netmaster Kasfok had left no doubt about his intentions. He wanted to start a war, and Shipmaster Tolkut was appalled. This was precisely the archaic behavior responsible for the situation in which the Mendraki now found themselves.

  When in doubt, Kasfok resorted to violence as a solution to a supposed problem. This had cost the Mendraki their home planet and, a few generations before, had led to the destruction of a large part of its fleet.

  Tolkut belonged to a generation that had long since begun to question such behavior, which had always led to suffering and destruction in the past. He wasn’t alone in this. Other Shipmasters had drawn similar conclusions from their history, and it was time to consult with them. Netmaster Kasfok had to be stopped before he could lead the miserable survivors of his kind to their ultimate decline.

  The pod has landed on the surface of the planet. However, we’re too far away to be able to make precise statements about the tiny spaceship or what’s happening at the landing site. The remote scout’s middle pair of legs twitched unwittingly in a gesture of submission. It’s also important to bear in mind that we are still receiving the data with a significant time delay of several macropulses, he added.

  Netmaster Kasfok was known for demanding precise data and clear findings from his subordinates. He showed little understanding for inaccurate information, and many a Mendrak had wound up in the converter after arousing his anger. But this time, Kasfok accepted the imprecise statement without comment.