Earth Station (Station Series Book 1)

by Martin Schroth

  Charlie walked out my office and headed toward his own. “So, José, I will have ESSI escort you back to ESSC where you can hop on a shuttle back to El Miguel. I hope your visit will be helpful. “

  “Absolutely, what you have accomplished here is amazing and I am sure that the residents of El Miguel will welcome becoming part of Bodhi.”

  ESSI appeared and beckoned José to follow her. “Thank you for showing me Earth Station. I look forward to returning.”

  ESSI escorted José back to ESSC where Paul was waiting. “Thank you ESSI, I hope to meet you again,” José said.

  “Let’s get on board. We’ll have you back in El Miguel in a jiffy. But first, how would you like to take a little ride?”

  “Sure, where are we going?”

  “Where I am sure you have never been before.”

  Paul showed José how to buckle the copilot seat and then proceeded to move the shuttle to a launch tube. “The engine in this shuttle is an anti-grav engine which will move us at incredible speeds. The amazing part is that you will not feel a thing because the entire shuttle is in a gravitational field of its own and is not subjected to the inertia caused by its movement. I don’t know how it does that. The squints tried to explain it to me but it went right over my head. By the way, the computer guys are affectionately called geeks and the engineers are called squints. They actually like their nicknames.”

  José reached the launch tube and quickly took off. “Keep an eye out the front view port. You’re in for a treat.”

  The earth sank away quickly and appeared as a large ball in the view port. José’s mouth hung open and stayed that way.

  “We are 100,000 km above the earth. Pretty cool, huh? It only took us three minutes to get here and you didn’t feel a thing. We’ll be heading back down to El Miguel now.” As Paul brought the shuttle down, the town of El Miguel appeared rapidly and the shuttle set down in the town square. There were several people milling around and they appeared not to be aware of the shuttle’s presence. José looked confused.

  “The cloak is on currently and they can’t see us. Now watch.” Paul reached over and turned the cloak off. The people outside jumped back and were freaking out until the ramp lowered and Paul and José walked out. They carefully approached.

  “Do not be afraid. This is just one of the wonders I have seen at the capital of Bodhi. I can assure you that it is perfectly safe,” José said trying to reassure his people.

  Soon they were asking questions right and left. “Tomorrow, some of the people that work at the capital, which is called Earth Station, will be coming to help you understand and answer all your questions. I have to go and meet with the rest of the elders.” José turned to Paul and said, “Thank you for bringing me back in such a thrilling manner. I hope to have the opportunity to take another ride in this amazing vehicle.”

  With the townspeople still clamoring and bombarding José with questions, Paul entered the shuttle and was soon back in ESSC.

  As José watched the shuttle leave, he thought to himself, we have entered an entirely new world. I pray that it is as exciting and good for my people as it seems.

  June 1st, 2112

  It took longer than we thought, but we finally have all the towns within the borders of Bodhi on board. There are a total of seven towns and villages outside of Earth Station that are part of Bodhi. Elections were held and each town including Earth Station elected three representatives to Congress. The first meeting of the Bodhi Congress is today.

  Barry and his crew built a special chamber just down from the office complex for congressional meetings. As I walked into the chamber, my seat was slightly elevated in the front center. In front of my seat, there were 8 seats in a straight row for the executive committee. Facing our seats, in a semi-circle, were the seats for the congressmen.

  I waited at the side of the room as the others began to arrive. Many of the congressmen were the leaders of the towns of Bodhi. José Ramos, the mayor of El Miguel, was elected as a congressman. After about ten minutes the room became very noisy. I approached my seat, turned and stood at my podium and gaveled the meeting to order.

  After things quieted down, I said, “I now bring to order the first meeting of the Bodhi Congress. As the first order of business, I would like to introduce the Executive Committee. I am the executive chairman and my name is Jake Weiss. Could you each please stand as I announce your name? Starting from the left is Mac Brown, head of security. Next is Maggie O’Reilly, head of research, and Charles Smith is our personnel director. Continuing, Mike Williams heads up the intelligence section, Barry Walker is our construction manager and projects director. Next, we have John Fleming, head of Engineering; Paul Roberts is the director of ESSC, and finally Phil Long, our computer ring director.” The members of Congress gave a standing ovation for the Committee that eventually died down. I continued, “Please make sure you read our constitution and pay special attention to the rules governing Congress. I now open the floor to new business.” I looked around and saw José with his hand up. “The chair recognizes Mr. Ramos from El Miguel.”

  “Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I have been appointed by a majority of congress to present several amendments we would like to add to the Constitution. I have sent copies to each of your tablets. Let us start with the first one. We propose that English be the official language of Bodhi. Mr. Chairman, could you please call for a vote on this amendment?”

  “All in favor of English as the official language of Bodhi, please indicate by pressing the yay or nay button.” After a few seconds the results appeared on the screen behind my seat. 20 yay and 4 nay. “It requires a 75% majority to pass. The vote is 83% for the amendment. The motion carries. What say you Executive Committee?”

  All the members of the committee pressed the yay button. “The committee is unanimous. The chairman also approves of the measure. English is now the official language of Bodhi. What else do we have Mr. Ramos?”

  “Our next amendment grants the right to vote to all citizens of Bodhi. The right extends to voting for congressional members and all local elections.”

  The measure was approved unanimously by all parties.

  “Our final amendment assures all citizens of Bodhi will not be discriminated against for race, sex, religion, political affiliation, or economic status.”

  The amendment also passed unanimously.

  “That’s it Mr. Chairman.”

  “Do we have any other business? The chair recognizes Mr. Fernandez, the congressman from El Sueco.”

  “I would like to propose that we set up permanent committees to deal with issues in education, defense, and technology.”

  “Mr. Fernandez, I would like to point out that the Executive Committee has reserved the right to make decisions regarding defense and technology. The proposal for congressional committees for defense and technology is denied for the following reasons. Defense and technology deals with highly sensitive issues and requires the highest level of security. Opening discussions regarding these issues at the committee level would undermine this security. However, when it comes to education, a committee would be beneficial. Members, you may now vote for forming an education committee.” After a few seconds, the vote was unanimous for forming the committee. “Mr. Fernandez, since you suggested the formation of the committee, I appoint you chairman of the Education Committee and you may choose four others to join you. Please have a meeting of your committee as soon as possible and send any recommendations you come up with to the Executive Committee for consideration. Is there any other new business?” Fernandez didn’t look too happy but he eventually shrugged his shoulders and nodded in the affirmative.

  Mr. Ramos again requested to be acknowledged. “Mr. Ramos, you have something else?”

  “Yes Mr. Chairman, I would like to propose a law that requires taxes collected locally for persons working at local jobs stay local, only the taxes collected locally for persons working for Bodhi, as a whole, be turned over to the Bodhi government. For
example, military personnel would pay their taxes to Bodhi. I have transmitted the specifics to your tablets. I would like all members to review the specifics so that we may vote on this proposal.”

  The next few minutes were quiet as all the members read the specifics of the proposal. “I see that you have done your homework Mr. Ramos. The chairman agrees with your assessment. Are we ready for a vote?”

  The votes started to appear on the screen. The vote ended unanimously for the law. “The motion carries. What say you Executive Committee?” They also agreed unanimously. “The law passes and is approved by the Chairman. The chair recognizes Mr. Armand from Villa Vado.”

  “Mr. Chairman, I believe that you may be against this suggestion but hear me out. I suggest you, as our monarch, be given the title of Emperor. The reason I suggest this is it is more conducive to the electorate. I have found that patriotism and pride in our leader will be greater if he is known as the Emperor; rather than the Chairman. It also will be less aggressive to other countries. The title of chairman is more impersonal and threatening than Emperor. People can more easily love and respect the Emperor than the Chairman.”

  Several other members voiced their agreement. “Mr. Chairman, I call for a vote.”

  The results appeared on the screen – 21 yay, 3 nay. Some of the members of the Executive Committee were smiling. They knew me and knew that I would feel uncomfortable being called the Emperor. “What say you Executive Committee?” I reluctantly asked.

  Five members voted yay and three abstained. “Since the majority of the committee voted for the proposal and I have no legitimate cause except for being uncomfortable being designated as Emperor, the motion passes.”

  “Thank you, your highness.” That comment elicited a snicker from both Mac and Maggie and a frown from me. Oh well.

  “Do we have anything else?” I looked around and no one requested acknowledgement. “I hereby schedule the next meeting of Congress for 9 a.m. two weeks from today. Meeting adjourned.”

  As the members filed out of the chamber, Mac came up to me, slapped me on the back with a smile and said, “Great first meeting your highness.”

  “Oh shut up. As your emperor, I command you to call me Jake in private,” I said growling back at him.

  That elicited a heartfelt laugh from the other committee members that were standing within earshot.

  Charlie followed me back to my office. As I sat down behind my desk, Charlie flopped into a chair in front of the desk. “What’s on your mind Charlie?”

  “Each of the towns has put together a soccer team and we have created a schedule of games to be played for the next three months, culminating in a championship game. The first game is tomorrow at 6 pm. I have been asked to get you there to make a small speech and toss the first ball to the ref.”

  “You know I don’t like that kind of stuff but I guess, now that I am the Emperor, I have to make appearances for my subjects,” I said sarcastically.

  “Yes you do your majesty,” Charlie responded with a broad smile. “We have provided each town with shuttles to bring spectators to the match. There should be almost one thousand in attendance.”

  “Come by a little early tomorrow to drag me to the game,” I relented.

  “On another note, I know how you like American Football so we have set up training camps in each town to teach anyone interested in learning how to play. The response has been very good and we should have football teams ready to play in several months. We can start the football season right after the soccer championships.”

  “Now we’re talkin’. I would like to do the coin toss for the first game. After all, I’m the Emperor,” I said with a smile.

  “That you are. Don’t let it go to your head.”

  “Anything else?”

  “Nope, see you later,” Charlie said, as he got up and walked out.

  July 11th, 2112 a.m.

  “So, Maggie, what have you got for us?”

  “Our doctors in sickbay have been busy. They are not only there to put Band-Aids on and do appendectomies, but also are doing some cutting-edge research in a variety of areas. One of their successes is standing outside the door.” Maggie walked over to the door and let a young person come into our meeting. “This is Miguel Garcia. Two years ago, he was in a farm accident that resulted in his arm having to be amputated. The amputation was in the middle of the upper arm. Miguel, I would like to introduce you to the Executive Committee and Emperor Weiss.”

  Miguel stepped up to me and extended his hand. I shook his hand. “Glad to meet you Miguel.”

  “It is my pleasure, your highness,” Miguel responded.

  I still can’t get used to people addressing me that way. It makes me cringe inside.

  “Miguel volunteered to have an artificial arm grafted to the stump left by the amputation. The hand you just shook is artificial,” Maggie explained. “The docs, in conjunction with the squints from engineering and the computer ring, were able to connect nerve, muscle and other connective tissue to the artificial limb by a grafting technique that essentially allows nerve and muscle impulses from the stump to control the arm as if it was his own flesh and blood. It has something to do with making his body think that the artificial limb is his own. I don’t know how it works but it does. Miguel, could you please remove your shirt?”

  Miguel removed his shirt to expose him new arm. I couldn’t see where it was attached and the artificial arm looked real. It had hair and muscle contours and when I looked closely, it even had pores. As I watched, Miguel moved his arm and picked up several objects. He moved his arm around like it was his own. “That’s amazing.”

  “The docs tell me that they can replace just about any limb: arm, leg, finger, and toes. We are going to search all of Bodhi for people who are missing an appendage and start replacing them with these types of artificial limbs. It won’t work for everyone. If the injury is more than five years old, the chance of success drops dramatically because the nerve and muscle endings no longer respond to brain signals, however, they are working on it. Miguel, you can put your shirt back on and get back to your home. Thank you for coming.”

  “I wish to thank you for what you have done for me. It has made me whole again. I cannot ever begin to tell you how much this means to me and my family.” Miguel bowed in front of me and exited the room.

  “I really wish they wouldn’t do that. Calling me ‘your highness’ is bad enough, now they are bowing!” I looked at the ceiling and rolled my eyes. The rest of them gave out a hearty laugh.

  Just then, Mike’s com went off. “I’ve got to take this. They know not to disturb me during these meetings. It must be important.” Mike lifted his com to his ear and nodded several times. “It seems our President Diaz is attempting to take apart one of the anti-grav platforms. I will route the intel feed to the monitor on the wall,” As he said that, an image of several men pushing the platform appeared on the screen. They pushed the platform through several doors and eventually ended up in a room that looked like an auto repair shop with all kinds of tools hanging on the walls and a large table in the center. They proceeded to place the platform on the table.

  “We have previous surveillance that shows the President ordering some of his scientists to try and dismantle the platform to figure out how it works. Besides being able to transport objects, our AGP’s have an array of detection devices on board. As it was brought into the room, it detected and stored the codes used to get through all the security points it passed to get to this place. I can guarantee that they will not be able to take apart the AGP. Watch.”

  As we watched, one of the scientists tried to remove a screw from the side of the AGP. A voice came from the AGP. “Do not attempt to dismantle this platform. This is your only warning.” The scientist quickly stepped back and talked into his com. “Mr. President, the device has issued a warning. How do you wish to proceed?” The scientist listened and nodded his head. “Yes, Mr. President, at once.”

  The scientist returned
to the AGP and again attempted to remove a screw from its side. The AGP immediately released a gas which rendered all the people in the room unconscious. It rose off the table and began to move towards the door of the room. Using the security codes it garnered on the way in, it opened the door and worked its way outside of the facility. As soon as it got outside it shot into the air.

  Paul’s com went off. Raising it to his ear, he listened for a second and a smile spread across his face. “The platform is back in ESSC.” Looking over at John, he said with a smile, “You guys down in engineering sure know how to build them.”

  I turned toward Mac and asked him, “Could you please get President Diaz on the video com for me?”

  After a few minutes the image of President Diaz appeared on the screen. “How are you today Mr. President?”

  He obfuscated his response by saying, “All is well Mr. Weiss.”

  “That is Emperor Weiss to you.”

  “I apologize, your highness. What can I do for you?”

  “I would like you to watch a video that we recently recorded.” With that, I sent him the video of the attempt at dismantling the AGP. His face became hardened and he looked at me with distain. “The anti-grav platform you attempted to dismantle is back here at Earth Station. I warned you about dismantling one of our devices. Now you will have to deal with the consequences. I have given the signal to all the devices we gave you and they will not function for three months. After that time, if you behave yourself, all the devices will return to life. If, however, you attempt to tamper with one of the devices again, they will all return to Earth Station and you will have to purchase the devices from us. Just so you know, an anti-grav platform costs three million credits and the food printer has a price tag of two million credits. If you attempt to tamper with the devices after you buy them, they will vaporize. That is all I have to say to you.” With that, I terminated the connection.