Lunara: The Original Trilogy

by Wyatt Davenport

  "Chloe is on the Protector, I guess," Chancellor Arwell said. "I read a brief report about your close relationship."

  Seth bit his lip. He didn’t understand how so many people knew about his personal life. Parker had been dead right when he said Mars invaded his privacy.

  The elevator slowed to a stop. "The dome is completely breathable air," the attendant announced. "Your breathing masks won’t be needed. Have a nice day."

  "Damon, why don’t you take Mr. Smith through the marketplace?" said the minister. "I will lead Captain Dalton through the rock formations on the cliff side of the port. We can reconvene later."

  "Very well, the market should be busy now. A shipment of minerals arrived from the Argyre Mining Colony this morning," the chancellor replied, looking over at Seth, Gwen, and Samantha.

  "Oh, Seth." Gwen pulled on his hand. "You are in for a treat. The tradesmen are fun to watch as they barter. It’s almost a sport."

  Eamonn and the minister headed toward the cliff side of the structure, while Seth, Gwen, Samantha, and Chancellor Arwell turned in the opposite direction.

  After moving out of the elevator, Seth stood beside the base of the dome and looked up. The dome reached high into the cliff’s face. So high, in fact, that he had the sensation that it was about to fall on him, and this caused him to take a few steps back. It was the enormous size of the dome that created the illusionary effect. Once he got used to that, he was impressed by the wonderful artistry of the dome. Studying the hexagonal pattern of the domed surface, he estimated that it had taken thousands of panes to fill the whole dome.

  "Aren’t you worried it will crack?" he quizzed the chancellor. "It’s just glass."

  "Not at all, the glass is made from a metalor polymer, which is one million times stronger than regular glass."

  "This makes the dome strong, able to outlast many future generations," Samantha added.

  "Metalor?" Seth inquired. "From the meteor stones?" Even though he mined the stones, he knew little of the technological advancements that the dust produced—an ignorance born out of his obsession to avoid all things Mars.

  "Metalor is the simple name we have given to any substance infused with a meteor’s special element. The new hangar on Lunara has it. You can catch a feature on this evening’s news. We are beginning to introduce it to the general public." The chancellor waved them along. "Let’s move quickly; we shall not let the minister beat us across the complex."

  Walking into the heart of the marketplace, Seth became claustrophobic, even in such a large dome; he had not been around so many people. Gwen tugged on his arm to keep him moving.

  The market was chaotic, with people running around in all directions. Flatbeds and pull wagons contained different types of goods coming from places he would never guess. "How is this all made sense of?" he asked Samantha.

  "After the vendors buy the goods, they sort and process the raw materials and sell them to the consumer. The perishable goods are shipped directly to the sellers. Most of the trades involve bartering," Samantha said. "We limit the amount of credits per transaction to encourage the bartering process. This limits the greed of the corporations."

  She pointed toward a group of men who were in a heated exchange with a man in yellow standing between them. "See those men over there? The man in yellow is a market controller. They organize the trading floor and mediate all disputes on site. Look how the group of men stop and listen to the controller. They are respected, and we rarely get complaints about their judgments."

  She tugged his arm. "That is how this turns into a sport. The men trade counteroffers back and forth and work each other for the better deal. They take pride in thinking they outwitted their opponent and the controller."

  "Pierre Cortez created this government?" said Seth. "This system of trade?"

  "He didn’t create the government," the chancellor said, raising his voice over the noise of the market. "He created the vision for the government. No one man can force his ideals on an entire population and sustain those ideals without revolt. He built a platform for us to stand united on. We can express our own ideas, we all have the opportUnity to succeed, and we leave no one behind suffering."

  Many people close by overheard Chancellor Arwell’s words and started to give a faint cheer. The chancellor waved his hand in recognition of the crowd’s gesture.

  Seth wondered if politicians ever stopped to look at themselves in the mirror. He shook his head and moved along with the group.

  "What happened to Pierre Cortez?"

  "He died ten years ago in a rail accident," Samantha replied. "The accident was suspicious because the crash occurred on a stable part of the track, and they found no shuttle malfunctions. A lot of questions were raised about Kaelin’s involvement. Surely you heard about it in school?"

  "I try to avoid Mars discussions," Seth said firmly. "Haven’t been back in a number of years and haven’t cared to come back."

  "Martian blinders?" Samantha said.

  "I can ignore Mars history as well as Martian people can ignore Earth history," Seth retorted.

  "I don’t like how those rumors get out of control," Gwen said coolly, wanting to cut off further angry words from him. "Kaelin is a good man. He has done a lot for Mars. Just before I left for Lunara, I worked with him on a number of charities and social programs."

  Seth took Gwen’s interruption as a gentle correction rather than a slight. She was right in stopping him from responding with the fury he felt. His anger was misguided, to say the least. "Why would they think Kaelin killed his father?" he asked.

  "Many believe he is controlling and temperamental," Gwen explained. "He was next in line to run the government and hated the idea of the new system. He wanted to carry the tradition of the Cortez family in control of Mars."

  "Instead," Samantha said, "He accepted the leadership of his home colony. The chancellor, who was vice minister at the time, was given the Zephyrian government."

  "This arrangement is only a ten-year project," the chancellor added. "We were to set the wheels in motion. In the coming months, the population will vote on the next leaders. Our first vote on Mars."

  "Are you running?" Seth said, as he collided with another person along the walkway. He had never seen so many people.

  "No, Kaelin and I will be ineligible. I am aging, and I am partly relieved to give up the post. Kaelin is pushing for an exception in his case. He is still young and has a keen intellect for government. Whether he will be successful or not, I do not know."

  "We must move along, Chancellor," Samantha said. "I am afraid the minister beat us. He is signaling." She pointed toward the minister and escorted the chancellor away.

  Seth lingered a few steps behind so he could catch a loud discussion between two traders.

  "I will give you forty tons of iron for your one ton of soybeans." The one trader was countering the original offer of fifty tons.

  "Are you crazy?" the shorter of the two traders replied hastily. "I bend down anywhere and find iron on this planet. Soybeans take a lot of overhead and care."

  "But how are you going to process the ore into strips? These are fully processed."

  "Processed, you say . . . how about forty tons of iron and a fifty-credit chip for the Trivium Port dining restaurant for my half ton of soybeans? My wedding anniversary is coming up."

  "A thirty-dollar credit chip and we have a deal."

  "Deal."

  They turned to get their trading contract datapads out of their respective vehicles and smiled with satisfaction, both thinking they had out-traded the other. Seth decided he favored the dealer getting the soybeans. Mars always had more iron, but food was rare and in greater demand.

  "I told you the deals are entertaining," Gwen whispered. She grabbed his hand, intertwining their fingers. She looked long into his eyes.

  "Gwen, what are you doing? We can’t . . . don’t embrace like that. What about Chloe?" He tried to pull back his hand.

  She grabbed him with bo
th of her hands.

  He couldn’t help but stare into her wide green eyes. Her Martian-born confidence enthralled him.

  "I have longed for you ever since I met you," she said. "Now I am back on Mars, I am more confident with myself."

  "I see it. But I’m confused. My emotions are mixed together, and I can’t seem to set my feet straight."

  "I want to help you through your pain. I can show you that Mars has changed. Please don’t deny me."

  "I . . . I don’t know what to say, Gwen. We can talk about Mars later but only as friends. I am destined for Chloe. The return to Mars is confusing you . . . and me. It is a passing crush." Seth was trying to spare her feelings. "We must get to the meeting now."

  Gwen set her teeth. With a quick pivot, she stormed away.

  He looked down at his feet, hoping he had not lost a friend. What was I supposed to do? Why was Gwen so forward?

  The sound of screams and magnetic brakes rumbling made him twist his head toward where Gwen had just gone. A man’s body lay on the ground in front of a cargo trailer. Seth looked all around for Gwen and with relief spotted her standing to the back.

  Above her, a cargo bale teetered, about to fall.

  "Gwen, look out," he yelled, dashing to save her.

  His world slowed; the crowd’s gasps lowered to a basso tone, long and droning; the cargo bale floated like a feather downward; and Gwen’s arms waved in a blur as she attempted to shield herself. He drove his legs with a surge and propelled himself toward Gwen. The bale continued to fall, slowly yet steadily downward, and oddly, he shot through the air many times faster.

  With a long reach, he made up meters in a matter of moments and batted the bale away from her head. It rattled along the ground without harming anyone.

  He tumbled down with Gwen in his arms.

  With a jerk, time returned to normal speed for Seth; voices from the crowd rang out in high-pitched tones, and the blur from the movement of people around him sharpened. Disoriented, he rolled his head from side to side, trying to make sense of the sudden honing of his senses. "What happened?"

  "You saved me!" Gwen kissed him on the lips. Her arms squeezed around his neck and surprisingly, his arms were around her.

  The bale! Gwen’s life! Reality rushed in on him, and he drew back to avoid the kiss. "Are you all right, Gwen?"

  "Yes, I am. You are amazing." She tried to kiss him again, but he placed his hand on her thin lips and shook his head.

  "The world went so slow for a second, like what athletes describe when they make a great play."

  "I don’t watch sports."

  Before he could say any more, a crowd gathered, murmuring about the accident. A voice bellowed from the top of the trailer. "Sorry, the truck stopped instantly, and I was thrown toward the bale."

  Seth pulled Gwen to her feet, dusted himself off, and glared at the man. "It’s okay . . . no one was hurt in the end. I wouldn’t stack so many bales on the trailer though." He looked to the front of the trailer. "How is the person who fell?"

  "He’s all right. He fell over his own cargo," someone from the crowd shouted.

  "Excellent. No one was injured."

  Chancellor Arwell hurried over to Gwen.

  "I am fine, Father," she said. "Let’s continue to the meeting."

  "Yes. Let’s hurry," the chancellor said.

  Gwen gave Seth a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Sam, Father, run ahead. I need to talk to Seth before the meeting."

  The crowd dispersed. Samantha and the chancellor walked away, leaving Seth alone with Gwen.

  "Please don’t tell Chloe what I have done," Gwen said. "I couldn’t have her hate me. This is an emotional return for me. My father has expectations, and so does Samantha in a different way."

  "Chloe will remain your friend. Nothing happened, but I’ll keep quiet."

  "I will, too," she said, frowning. He put his hand on her shoulder, and they made their way toward the meeting.

  Chapter 11

  "You almost have it, Roche," Parker said from inside the hangar bay in the lower reaches of Trivium Port. He handed Roche the last bolt that held the sonic cannon into the place under the portside wing. He wanted to prepare the Protector for their next encounter with the invaders. He and Roche had already installed a turret gun on the front of the ship and another sonic cannon under the starboard-side wing.

  Roche insisted on the same drop bombs and tracers for the rear of the ship, and he didn’t object. It just took them some time to calibrate it just right. They had spent the better part of the last three hours on the repairs.

  "And where did you get all this?" Jan said as she moved up behind Parker.

  Parker jumped.

  "Why are you so edgy?" She grabbed him by the shoulders and jostled him around. "This is your home port."

  He shrugged her off. "Despite the chancellor’s reassurances, I’m skeptical of everyone’s motives around here."

  "The captain is okay with it," Roche said, jumping down beside them.

  "The captain is distracted." Parker looked up at the cannon, which Roche had fastened correctly. "He doesn’t want anything to disturb his return to Mars, so he is accepting the easy explanations."

  "He wasn’t himself on the trip in," Jan said. "I spoke with him on several occasions, and he didn’t seem to want to discuss any alternatives about what might have happened. He insisted this was an isolated incident, and since Gwen was safe now, the crew was out of danger."

  Parker turned toward her. "You don’t believe him, do you?"

  "No, I don’t. Before we go to Aethpis for our reception with Sarah Cortez, I want to speak with some friends. I hope to find out some more information about what happened on Mars’s end. How reliable is the information they are feeding us? And how long will the transmissions to Lunara be down?"

  "The transmissions will be down for a few days. Will Dasher, the person who connected me with the weapons systems, told me the array is damaged more than the media was told."

  "Really? How reliable is he?"

  "We go back to my military days. He wouldn’t lie to me, not a squad-mate from my training days."

  "Good enough." Jan nodded. "Can you believe how much Mars has changed? I haven’t been back in ten years, just after war ended."

  "I haven’t been back in five years," Parker said. "Trivium is bustling with people. Did you see how many kids were running around?"

  "The postwar baby boom," Jan replied. "They said that a third of the population on Mars is under ten years old. And another quarter is under twenty-five. Like Seth, Chloe, and Gwen."

  "A third." Parker smiled. "That is about the same number of people originally on Mars. Aethpis and Zephyria had two hundred thousand people each in their life pods if I recall my history."

  "Yes," Roche said. "And another hundred thousand in the smaller colonies. Four hundred and ten original outer colonies started, but eventually most combined into Aethpis, Trivium, and Zephyria."

  Parker and Jan looked at him in amazement.

  "You know that?" Parker said. "I thought you were as bad as Seth about Mars."

  "I don’t hate Mars, and sorry, Jan, but I’m not insane like Seth to purposely avoid a major part of humanity."

  Jan nodded. "Seth’s eyes are being forced open now, so I hope he can handle it."

  "He will," Parker said. "The Principles of Man are being enforced now. He has nothing to fear from the planet. It is Mars Medical that concerns me."

  Roche added. "Did you know Jonathan Norse set up the Principles of Man when the two colonies were introduced ten years into colonization?"

  Parker rolled his eyes. "Stop with the history books."

  Jan laughed. "To think it took ten years for humans to spread enough across Mars for the two major colonies to meet."

  "And they are only a two-hour train ride from each other," Parker said. "I always hated Mars’s history before breathing masks were viable. It was so depressing."

  "A suit on Mars does seem constricti
ng." Jan leaned her pear-shaped hips against the landing strut.

  "Lunara is depressing and constricting to you guys?" Roche cocked his head at Jan. "All I know is environment suits outside of a colony."

  "Lunara is different," Parker said. "It isn’t on Mars. And why would anyone want to run around on the moon? Is there anything more boring than the moon’s endless powdery surface?"

  Roche smirked. "Mars’s planet-wide boulder collection."

  "Oh, come on." Jan laughed. "The caves on Mars have revealed—"

  "Hello?" a voice said from behind them.

  Parker tensed. He wasn’t expecting anyone, and the hangar was restricted to Lunara personnel only. He turned around.

  A small man, dressed in crisply cut and pressed coveralls, walked up to them.

  "Who are you?" asked Parker.

  "I work in the port, and I heard the mighty Protector was here. I wanted to come see it."

  "We aren’t giving tours," Parker snapped back.

  "I heard you made it from Earth in less than four days. That is pushing the quickdrives pretty well."

  "And how would you know we came in less than four days? Who are you?"

  "Darid Ravel. Just came over the news. Everyone is talking about the invasion of Lunara. What was it like?" Ravel swept his eyes across the hangar, around and around, as if he was trying to find something.

  Jan snorted.

  Parker didn’t like it either. He wasn’t going to talk about the invasion to some random worker. "The ship is in good shape. Is there something else you wanted besides wanting to gawk at us and the ship?"

  "Are Seth and Chloe here?" Ravel asked. "The starwing pilots. I would enjoy meeting them."

  Parker felt a pang of frustration come over him. Of all the times for an admirer to come into the hangar, it had to be now. It struck him that the man asked about Seth and Chloe because no one asked about them on Lunara. Not once had a freighter pilot wanted to meet them. People heard the rumors, shrugged them off, and moved on. "They aren’t here, and you should leave now," he said. "This is Lunaran space for the time being."