Initiation Series: Series One Compilation (Terran Chronicles)

by James Jackson

  Johnny looks up, “I will, I promise.” He can barely stand still, he is so excited.

  George nods, walks to his suit, then steps backward into it. As the suit closes around him, he feels as if his mind is synchronizing with it. The visor is still up, which allows him to give Lisa one more smile, before he and Johnny leave.

  The second they are out of sight, Lisa flops onto her bed, exhausted. The effort of maintaining her guise of being well has been taxing. She lays on the bed, closes her eyes, and tries to fight off her nausea.

  Patrick arrives at the hangar deck in his bodysuit, and is pleasantly surprised to see George is waiting for him. Spotting George’s son causes him to frown, this is not some field trip, he thinks in annoyance. He immediately chastises himself for his thoughts, George has earned the right to take his son if he wishes. He walks up to George, and smiles. He is reminded of the time they worked together dismantling an ancient Gamin construction dock on the Oglan’s planet. George grins back, he too, is happy to be doing something.

  They turn to see Robert sprinting across the walkway toward them. A large camera dangles from his left hip, its long strap hangs over his far shoulder. Bulging pouches are attached to his belt loops, while a small backpack completes his wares. He comes to a halt, and between deep breaths, asks, “Mind if I come along? I am supposed to be reporting everything, you know.”

  John interrupts them when he calls out from the ramp of the largest shuttle in the hangar, “Let’s get this show on the road! We don’t have all day to hang around here.”

  The four men won’t admit it to each other, but they’re quite excited. It’s not every day you get to establish a colony on a new world. Elsewhere in the hangar, other shuttles are being prepared for launch, as the rest of the crew galvanizes themselves into action. Johnny stares at the men with reverence, then quietly follows them onto the shuttle. He sits in the midsection next to Robert, and though he stays out of the way, he sneaks peeks at the dangling camera. Patrick and George stow their suits, then sit with John in the cockpit.

  Robert turns to Johnny, smiles, lifts his camera, then takes a number of pictures. From where he sits, he can see the cockpit and the hangar walls through the shuttle’s view screen. The shuttle lifts up, glides sideways, then slowly moves downward. The view tilts, with the shuttle, so that they can exit the Terran’s ramp. Ever so slowly, the long shuttle makes its way out of the hangar. Onlookers stare in awe as the shuttle’s sides seem to almost touch the Terran’s walls in its passing.

  John is busy monitoring their progress, and only relaxes once they are in space. He flies the shuttle downward with confidence, and enters New Earth’s atmosphere. Alarmingly, the shuttle begins to feel sluggish in his hands. The designers not only failed to compensate for New Earth’s slightly heavier gravity, but it has also been overloaded. John shouts to Robert and Johnny, “Hey guys, hang on, this may get rough.”

  John activates the shuttle’s thrusters, then with their speed building, aims at the proposed colony site. A bead of perspiration works its way down his face, soon followed by another. Patrick is surprised when he notices sweat rolling down John’s face. He gulps when he realizes how intently John is working the shuttle’s controls.

  Outer hull plates heat up, and begin to glow as they descend ever faster and faster, almost in a free fall. The thrusters begin to scream louder as John boosts their output, but still they plummet downward. The shuttle shakes and shudders as the forces at work threaten to tear it apart. Finally, with the thrusters at one hundred-ten percent, they begin to slow down. Robert holds onto his seat as the shuttle is buffeted by strong turbulence. Johnny grins in excitement, the fast decent thrills him. George sits by pensively waiting, there is nothing he can do, except to let John concentrate.

  John wipes more sweat off his brow, then says “Got this beast now. I am going to put her down near the site of the radio telescope.”

  Patrick replies, “Good. That’s where we plan to run the first set of power lines down the mountain side. Another set will run down the other end of the mountain range, avoiding that lake completely.” He waggles his finger at the distant lake as it comes into view, then rapidly vanishes behind thick clouds. A sudden wind gust strikes the shuttle causing him to hurriedly grab the sides of his seat.

  George also holds on tight, then nods in understanding, as he adds, “Ah! That way, even if we lose one set of power lines, the town will still be connected to the grid via the other.”

  Patrick replies, “Exactly. We have no idea how stable this area is geologically, or how bad the rain fall gets.” He quickly adds, “Well, Emma did examine old rock falls, and many of the smaller mountain streams. She also ran surveys using the ship’s scanners, but, we can only learn so much from space.”

  John stares intently at the rapidly approaching landing area, and interrupts their conversation, “Hang on, we’re coming in pretty fast.” He extends the shuttle’s landing gear, then pulses the thrusters far beyond their tolerances for a fraction of a second, expertly arresting their descent. He grins a little sheepishly as the shuttle softly touches down. The whine of the thrusters immediately diminishes to a barely noticeable level.

  Patrick slaps John on the back, “All that sweat for nothing. Piece of cake.”

  John stares back at him, and thinks, he has no idea how close that was. John opens the side ramp, then gulps as the smell of charred hull plates assaults his nose. The odor brings back memories of his escape from the International Space Station before its destruction. Reminiscing, he sits in his pilot’s chair for a few seconds as he tries to recall the scientist who sat in the rear compartment of the Endeavour, Gustav! A smile breaks onto his face as he recalls the man’s name, wonder what ever happened to him?

  Patrick interrupts John’s thoughts, “You’re just showing us how good you are.”

  John smiles, “Well, I think I burned out a few thrusters, so while you guys unload the cargo, I will be checking them out.” His smile expands to a full grin as he taps the control which opens the rear hatch.

  George looks at Johnny and says sternly, “Stay out of the way young man, or I will never hear the end of it.”

  Robert glances from Johnny to George, then says, “I will watch him; besides, he can help me.”

  Patrick is already in his suit and standing outside at the rear hatch. He begins to chuckle, then whole heartedly laughs, “John, you have to see this.”

  Everyone makes their way to Patrick. There before them, attached to almost half of the long supports inside the cargo bay are the notes, ‘remove prior to launch’.

  John closes his eyes and shakes his head, “A note on the pilot’s console would have been handy!” His voice picks up in volume for the last few words. Still shaking his head, he walks away. Stupid, stupid.

  Inside the lengthy cargo area rest fifteen long, round, steel poles. Each one is longer than a football field, and as wide as a small car. Combined, they will make five tall towers.

  A strong gust of wind blows Johnny’s hair straight back, making him stagger as if he were drunk. Robert quickly grabs his camera, then turns to face the strong breeze, “Wow. This is going to be a great place for these turbines.” He suddenly has an idea, “Hey Johnny,” he says, getting the boy’s attention. “How about you and I start documenting this? You can use this camera, while I set up the video equipment.” He pats his small backpack, then takes it off.

  Johnny is stunned by the offer. After a few seconds, he finds his voice and answers, “That would be awesome! Thank you, Sir.”

  Robert grins at the young boy’s obvious enthusiasm, “No need to call me Sir, young man, Robert is just fine.”

  While the pair sets up the video camera, Patrick gets to work removing the sections. His bodysuit is the only reason he is even able to budge the heavy cargo. He stands and looks at the base of the largest component, easily taller than him, and though it tapers, it does not narrow much.

  Meanwhile, George strides purposefully along the to
p of the mountain ridge. With his suit’s visor down, he is able to pinpoint the exact location that Emma has selected for the first wind generator. He immediately gets to work absorbing the ground material. In doing so, he creates a very deep hole that is wide enough to accommodate the base of a tower.

  Patrick, with the assistance of a gravity sled, transports the first section to George. This section, like a number of others, has a hollow core. Patrick stares at the base, then the hole, “Good job,” he says, “let’s get the next two pieces.”

  George lifts his visor, “It will be interesting to see if these towers are as easy to assemble as the designers say.”

  Next, the two men bring over a long, thin, segment which they slide inside the base. Once half way inside, it locks into place with a loud clunk. Patrick gazes at their handiwork, “I am glad we’re putting these things together on the ground. It’s going to be a real pain standing them up, and getting them into the holes.”

  George nods in agreement, “Yeah, we’re going to have to use a shuttle to get them vertical, and that will be tricky.”

  Robert stands well back, his video equipment rests upon a tripod and records the construction for posterity’s sake. The third piece of the tower, the top, slides over the stabilizing core, then it too, audibly clicks into place. George gets to work sealing the joint with his suit.

  Johnny stands near Robert, taking his role of photographer very seriously. He points his digital camera at the tip of the tower and asks, “Why is it like that? It’s not even finished.”

  Robert looks at what will eventually be the tower’s top, then replies, “Once the towers are standing upright, the generator will be installed, after that, the blades can be attached.”

  Johnny casts his gaze down the length of the tower, “It’s very big!” he exclaims.

  “They have bigger in Texas,” Robert replies, “but yes, these are still quite impressive.”

  Johnny’s eyes go wide, “Bigger in Texas, wow!”

  Robert nods his head, then says, “Yes, I did a report on wind farms a while back.”

  Robert and Johnny continue to watch and record as the process is repeated, until there are five very long towers laying on the mountain top. Each one rests near a large hole. Finally, under the fading light of the setting sun, they pack up their equipment, and then join the others on the shuttle.

  Johnny peeks into the cavernous cargo area, then calls out, “Hello!” The sound rings out hollow, and echoes loudly. Scaring himself, he quickly runs to the side ramp, then sits in his chair as if nothing happened.

  The three men glance at Johnny, his youthful antics make them smile. The return trip to the Terran is uneventful, John’s fears of burned out thrusters prove to be unfounded.

  The next day Johnny travels with them again, but this time they only load the shuttle with enough parts for four towers. This second trip is nowhere near as hard on the shuttle, or John’s piloting skills.

  By the third day, Johnny is bored, so he stays on the Terran with his mom. Robert also decides to stay on the ship, for now anyway. He plans to return at various times to capture the progress.

  The loading crews on the Terran are surprised on John’s third trip. He pilots the long shuttle partially inside the Terran. With only its rear loading ramp inside, he parks. The Terran’s dampening shields shimmer around the hull. The bulk of the transport hangs out in space. Though slightly unnerved, the crews begin loading the shuttle.

  John, George, and Patrick, cannot exit the shuttle, because its side ramp is still in space. Instead, the three men wait and discuss their plans. George and Patrick have stowed their suits and are resting. John listens to a report from the loading crew, then smiles, “They tell me that loading like this will be much easier and quicker.”

  Patrick frowns at a thought that has been bothering him. “Guys, there is no way that these wind generators will be able to power everything.”

  George’s brow creases, as he had not even considered this.

  John turns to both men, “That’s what you get for missing out on some of the mission briefs,” he says jovially. Continuing on, he explains, “The wind generators will provide power for the settlement’s basic infrastructure. Once the grid is in place, we can start landing Patrick’s construction crews. They will put together the prefabricated mini-steel mill, and the sawmill.”

  George nods and exclaims, “Right! That’s why the Liberty has to land on the field that Emma has selected, so we can hook its power up to the grid.”

  John replies, “And that’s another reason we’re running power lines down both sides of the mountain.”

  Patrick is still perplexed, and says, “I still don’t get why we’re installing these wind generators along both mountain ridges though.”

  John answers, “Hopefully, before the Liberty arrives, we will locate a decent mining site for raw materials. That way, once the Liberty does arrive, we can get to work making more generators using the mini-steel mill.”

  George sits back in his chair, “We will need to add more towers, enough so that when the Liberty leaves, the colony will be self sufficient.”

  Patrick nods as he imagines hundreds of wind generators lining the mountain tops. Each with their blades slowly spinning in the planet’s breeze.

  The days begin to blend together, as tower after tower is pieced together, then left laying on the ground. The twenty-six hour days allow the three men to work long and hard. Each night, George climbs into bed, exhausted. Each morning he rises, kisses his sleepy wife, then gets back to work.

  Patrick’s workforce is not slacking either. They deliver tools, generators, and minor equipment, using the smaller shuttles.

  While everyone else is busy, Joe uses his time trying to get the Gamin communications console they brought from Earth’s moon to work. Finally exasperated, he has to report his findings to Cindy. He feels a little defeated as he walks slowly to the bridge.

  Joe finds Cindy in the command chair viewing something on her small consoles. He shakes his head as he approaches her, “That module is indeed a control interface, but we have two problems. First, the actual antenna is the Gamin satellite grid, and secondly, each console is encoded to the grid it belongs to. Basically, it’s a complex security feature that prevents anyone doing what we tried to do.”

  Cindy replies, “But we can talk with Regent Voknor using the console we took from the damaged ship.”

  Joe nods, “Yes, but that console uses this ship’s communications array, which somehow utilizes the main drive to send transmissions.”

  Cindy puts a hand to her forehead and thinks for a moment, “So we basically have a remote, but no device.”

  “Yes,” Joe replies, “that’s a good analogy.”

  Cindy stares at Joe, then frowns in confusion and shakes her head. She lifts up a hand and says, “Hang on a sec, the Regent spoke to George. How?”

  Joe also frowns, “I am not sure, but this ship was in orbit at the time.”

  Expecting Joe to be finished she looks down at her console again, then when Joe does not leave, she glances at him, “there is more?”

  Joe fidgets, then says, “This means that Barbara’s radio telescope is going to be useless as a means of communicating with Earth.”

  Cindy shrugs her shoulders, “Well, she may as well build it anyway. We have all the components onboard, and at the very least, she and her team can conduct research.”

  John, George, and Patrick, break their routine so they can transport the heavy earth moving equipment. Everything on the Terran is stored in crates. This is in case the ship should lose gravity, both people and equipment would be safer. It takes almost all morning before the long shuttle is loaded. As if on cue, Johnny comes running toward his father. A camera dangles from his neck, while his face carries a broad grin.

  Robert walks casually toward the group, “thought I had better be on hand to capture the unloading.”

  Johnny glances up at George, “I can come, can’t I?” Befo
re George can answer, he adds excitedly, “Robert said I could take pictures.” He holds up the camera, as if to add credibility to his request.

  George glances from Patrick to John, since they remain silent, he sighs slightly. “Okay, but you have to stay out of everyone’s way.”

  The group enters the shuttle, then makes the relatively short journey to the valley. A member of Patrick’s crews waits with a stockpile of supplies. John lands the shuttle nearby, opens the rear ramp, and heads out to watch.

  Robert points to Johnny, “I want you to take photos of every crate that comes off the shuttle.”

  Johnny nods eagerly, “Yes Sir!” he replies excitedly.

  George and Patrick wear their suits, and still have to use gravity plates to unload the larger crates, some of which are huge. As soon each crate is unloaded, a group of men armed with crowbars pry it open.

  Johnny is surprised by the contents of the load. A large six-wheel grader, two bulldozers, three heavy rollers, and a dozen dump trucks all rest before him. They are all painted a bright yellow, and appear to be brand new. Johnny glances into the shuttle’s cargo area, then back at the assortment of vehicles. He scratches his head in confusion, they do not look as though they would have all fit.

  Robert smiles when he sees Johnny’s confused expression, then says “Remind you of a clown car?”

  Johnny turns to look at Robert, even more perplexed, “A clown car?” he says, baffled.

  Robert opens his mouth to reply, then shuts it. After a few seconds, he says, “Never mind, just showing my age.”

  Patrick steps from his suit, and walks over to a grader; their only one. Its cab is designed for a single occupant. The crew has already decided that since Patrick is the crew’s foreman, it falls on him as a symbolic gesture to start the engine of the first vehicle. Patrick is well aware that if the engine should fail to start and run, it would be his fault in their eyes.