by Tom Tryst
The host pauses to look at what must be his notes, even though he has seldom referenced them, then continues, “The one thing that will immediately get your attention when you step outside is the sky. I’m not going to be a spoiler and tell you; you’ll see for yourself. All I’ll tell you is that when I first saw it, well, it took my breath away. And the longer I experienced it, the more beautiful it becomes. It is the effect of the thick atmosphere. All and all, I can’t imagine a more beautiful world.
“Now, you’re probably thinking, ‘that’s all well and good, but what will our lives be like?’ We have an agriculture-based economy. And we were trying to do on Earth, we are a worldwide communal society; it’s share and share alike. Most of you will live on farms, raising much of your own food with a surplus going for trade. Combined with the produce of other farming communities, the planet trades with other civilizations. On Earth, farming can be a hard life, but not here on Paradise. You saw one of the reasons as soon as you arrived: robots. Robots and robotic machinery do all the labor. You manage, schedule their activity. The same applies to the various supportive trades, manufacturing your needs beyond just food and water. There are more robots on the planet than there are people.
“Now as to food. All Paradisians are vegans. We do not consume animal flesh or animal by-products, such as dairy and eggs. We have healthier products. As the human body was never intended to eat and digest flesh, we are healthier and can expect to live longer lives, staying active into old age. With our vast variety of fruits, vegetables, roots and grain, I have never regretted not having bacon and eggs for breakfast, nor steak for dinner.
“There is a variety of wild life on the planet, as well as sea life. They all roam free. They all live in harmony; none attack nor eat other species. But the term ‘wild life’ can be deceptive, for they have become used to humans and have no fear of us. However, we do not take away their freedom by attempting to make them pets. Nor do we kill them for food - or sport - a crime on Paradise. A particular animal may approach you out of curiosity, even staying around several hours out of the day, but they always return to their territory. As we often harvest food they eat, we likewise let them ‘harvest’ food we grow. We do this by dedicating a portion of our acreage to planting food they like.
“We do have a government by the people, but not in which humans will run the government, but rather what we, the people, want government to do for us. The often difficult administration, legislation and adjudication of government are accomplished by androids similar to the Peace Keepers, walking ‘super computers’ programed by the Universal Council. By ballot vote, we can add, change or delete any law. The only time the Universal Council will intercede is if there is a situation which would be detrimental to our welfare; and then they will explain just why they are stepping in. They can be compared to Earth’s Supreme Court. However, if by ballot vote - a two-thirds majority - the people express that we want to override that intercession, it will be so . . . with a few exceptions; they will not let us take action which could be detrimental to ourselves. We have learned it is wise to heed the advice of the Universal Council. While they have deep respect for us asa race, we have to remember that we are primitive in comparison; we have yet to completely unlock the potential of our minds - something they assure us we will do in time.
“Most trade moves north-south. Tropical produce will move north to those in the northern hemisphere, south to those in the southern hemisphere. Temperate produce will move south in the northern hemisphere, north in the southern hemisphere. Our semitropical produce can move either way. Thus most trade is by latitude rather than longitude. Don’t worry about what goes where; the robotic system handles that.”
He pauses and looks over the group, then asks, “Any questions?”
Despite the thoroughness of his briefing, there are many. Daniel had been listening intently, but he has a question regarding local government.
The host patiently answers, “The planet is divided into territories. Each territory is divided into districts. Each district is divided into wards. The seats of government are in a village that is roughly in the center of a district. Each ward elects a representative, a warden, who, together with other district wardens, relays the majority desires of the people they represent. You will know who your warden is; he or she will be available to you by telecommunication. Each of you will be issue a very useful communication device. When there is a request for change by a significant number of people, a sort of ‘town hall meeting’ is scheduled at the government center of your district. Any action is by majority vote, with a few issues requiring a two-thirds majority. But all that is covered in the manual we will distribute in a moment.”
Even as he is speaking, a robot enters pushing a cart loaded with booklets.
A few more questions are asked, which he quickly answers. Then, with a broad grin, he announces, “Now is the part I enjoy. I like to see the expressions on your faces. I am going to show you a three-dimensional projection that will show you much of the planet, a 360 degree panorama.. I know you’ll enjoy it. Watch the screen behind me.”
He steps to the side as the screen comes to life, scene covering the entire wall before them. The group gets their first look at Paradise.
The camera is set on a grassy hilltop, giving a panoramic view of rolling hills and valleys, with a river coursing slowly through. Beyond is a range of low mountains, lushly green. The sky at the horizon appears to be hazy, a pale yellow, yet the hills and mountains are clearly defined. The grassy greens are impossibly brilliant, complimented by the deeper greens of large groups of trees. Closer in, near the foot of the hill, they can see spots of color on the trees, a wide variety of fruits in various stages of ripening. A small flock of bird-like creatures fly by in the distant, too far to tell what kind - then they realize they wouldn’t be earth birds.
The camera begins to slowly scan the horizon. They can see evidence of cultivation in one valley, a patchwork of fields in various colors. As the panning continues, very slowly, a small cluster of animals appears in the foreground, grazing. One looks up and stares at the camera for a while, the returns to grazing as they pass out of view. A broader valley shows more farms and what appears to be a village, a collection of small buildings. Another, smaller river runs through the village.
More rolling hills, then what looks like a small lake, but as the camera continues its pan, they can see the lake is quite large, with a few villages on its shores.
They had been looking away from the sun. The camera has made half a circle, and starts tilting up. As the land drops away, the pale yellow becomes brighter and brighter, until the golden globe of the sun almost fills the screen, evoking a gasp from some. It is the color of shining, pure gold, giving of a soft light.
The pan continues downward and onward, showing an unending expanse of hills and valleys, with the hills getting lower and the valleys wider. Soon another body of water enters the view, with darker water and surf washing onto pale yellow beaches. Soon there was nothing but water beyond the land. One of the oceans. The pan continues with little change.
Those present might have seen beautiful landscapes, but the golden yellow sun castes an almost surreal atmosphere over the land, creating impossible hues. By the time the camera has revolved 360 degrees, all are convinced that the original earthling settlers had named the planet properly; it is, indeed, a Paradise.
The view froze with the original image as the host steps back to center stage. “I take from the looks on your faces, you like what you see,” he states, smiling. “I love to see the looks of surprise and wonderment. It is beautiful. And what you just saw is representative of the entire planet. This is an area between the semitropical and temperate zone. It gets lush as you move south; more deciduous forest as you move north. We have tried to locate you in an area which most closely reflects the area you come from - less the cold winters and not as hot summers. Incidently, the growing season is the year around.”
He escorts them t
o another room, where they are fitted with more suitable clothing, not that much different from the day wear in The Compound. Then they are taken outside, into the golden sunshine.
Chapter Twenty-five
The transport terminal sits atop a low hill. As the group steps out, Daniel sees they had been in another black box. Three open-sided shuttle buses await them, but it is the panorama beyond that captures the attention of all. The sun is high, almost straight overhead, its golden glow giving the same softening, pastoral effect they had seen in the video, only more poignant when coupled with the warm, sweet-smelling air. Unlike the video, most of the land is forest, dark green in the shadows but tinted lighter in the sunlight. There are occasional open meadows of tall, emerald green grass. In the distance, a lake shimmers in the sunlight, the waters looking green instead of blue. In the distance is a line of puffy white clouds, tinted yellow where the sun reflects off them. The sky changes from a soft yellow at the horizon to a gold high above them.
Their host gives them time to enjoy the view, telling them that they are only a half-hour drive from their new home. The operator of each canopied shuttle is a robot. Those anxious to get to their new home are the first to board, filling the first bus, capable of carrying fifteen passengers. Soon others board the second bus, but Daniel holds back his crew. They board the third bus. Their host bids them goodbye. Only when the bus rises slightly under them, does Daniel realize they are supported by the anti gravity the speaker had described. Seeing it in action is impressive.
Their bus is the last to move out, slowly gaining speed over the grassland. The buses ahead are only about four feet off the ground, just high enough to clear the stalks of grass. The grasses wave gently as the vehicles pass over. Soon they are traveling an estimated forty miles-per-hour, smoothly rising and falling as the bus follows the terrain, gradually going downhill.
They are approaching heavy woods, tress reminding Daniel of the oaks back home, only not as dark a green and with much larger leaves. And at least twice as large. It looks like they were going to plunge into the dense forest, when he sees a cleared open path, the tree tops turning it into a tunnel. As soon as they enter the cool shade, the air reminds him of wet moss. They occasionally break out into the open, then back into the woods. He never carried a watch, depending on his cell phone for the time - a phone that he left back on Earth. He can only guess at the passage of time.
They come out of the woods again so see a broad valley spread out before them, and in the distance a small lake. A stream runs down the center of the valley, following a wandering course. Far beyond, on the other side of the lake are clusters of small buildings, probably dwellings. This is the first sign of civilization.
On the floor of the valley, they see a mowed area with a number of off-white tents clustered around two larger tents. The three shuttles glide to a gradual stop near the front of one large tent, then slowly settle to the ground. All step out onto closely mowed grass, grass so thick it makes a beautiful lawn. His first thought is that it would make great pasture, then quickly remembers there will be no livestock.
He reaches down and grabs a handful of grass and pulls it out of the ground, roots and soil attached. The soil is dark, almost black, and smells like rain. It looks like very fertile soil. They are surrounded by a vast valley of grass, the land slightly sloping toward the distant lake. Scattered groves of trees dot the plain, trees seemingly impossibly huge, two or three times as big as anything he has seen on Earth. There is no doubt in his mind that this would be excellent farm land. The valley is surrounded by larger, forested hills. Not a structure is in sight.
But he cannot imagine himself as a farmer. Neither can he see Sherry standing in a kitchen canning fruits and vegetables. Of all of those on his crew, only David might fit in, having spent some years working at a dairy. But definitely not himself.
He is an organizer. He is a leader. He has stepped into critical situations, observed what needed to be done, and led his people to accomplish the tasks. No matter what changes Washington made, thus changing their goal, he adjusted to meet the challenge. The thought of being a mundane tiller of the soil depresses him.
He looks ahead at Sherry, walking hand-in-hand with Janet toward the larger of the tents, trying to visualize how she would fit into an agriculture lifestyle. She had been Mayor of Glen Haven, making dramatic changes, turning a governmental, almost military, complex into a beautiful little village. She created a working city government. He tries to picture her in a gingham dress with an apron and bonnet . . . .
“Hey, Buddy,” Charles nudges him as he passes, bringing him out of his reverie, “they’re waiting for us in the tent.”
Daniel takes a deep breath and forces himself to concentrate on the here and now as he brings up the end of the little parade. Whoever ‘they’ might be, he will soon find out what their options might be.
The tent turns out to be the kitchen and dining hall. He realizes the aliens had set it up much like Earth’s military ground forces would have done. The tables are long, picnic style, with long benches on each side. His people are finding seats.
As he makes a quick scan, his eyes lock on what he had first dismissed as another robot. Then he saw the more humanoid form - and the black numbers on its chest - 37. He approaches it, looking for similarities with the ‘droid that had assisted them in The Compound. Certainly, it can’t be the same one; they had destroyed it.
“Yes, it can,” 37 responds to his thought. “We felt you would be more comfortable with an android with whom you were familiar.”
“But you can’t be the same 37,” Daniel insists, not voicing acknowledgment that they destroyed the humanoid.
“You destroyed the body, not the essence. We have been replicated.”
“Well, surprise, surprise,” Daniel utters with some sarcasm, even while at the same time he knows the ‘droid is reading his emotions, that he regrets his part in the rebellion. In fact, he is glad to see it, knowing they worked well together.
“Thank you for your confidence,” it replies. “We hope we can allay your anxieties. Please sit. We will brief you and your people.” It was obvious that the aliens still looked upon Daniel as their leader.
“Yes, but we haven’t chosen a leader yet,” Daniel mildly protests.
“The others look upon you as their leader, They have already chosen.”
As he takes a seat toward the front, a place Sherry has saved for him, he glances out the front opening of the tent. The three shuttles are gone.
“May we again welcome you to Paradise,” 37 begins, addressing the group in his usual monotone, emotionless manner. It is looking at the middle of the group, but appears to each as if it is looking directly at them. “And welcome to your new home. This valley, bounded by hills and fed by a river and two streams, now belongs to your group, as well as the thirty to arrive tomorrow. None of the wild life is dangerous. Nothing bites or stings. They have no diseases. After they have satisfied their curiosity of the newcomers, they will leave you alone. We ask you to do the same.
“For the time being, you will have your meals here. As you are aware, you will be what you call ‘vegetarians.’ You will live on vegetables, fruits and grains; some similar to what you are accustomed to; some will be strange. You will have no livestock. You will not hunt the native life. That includes life forms living in the lake, river and streams. We respect all life forms; we expect you to do the same. You will find, with time, your new diet will make you healthier.
“There are many edible fruits in the many groves of trees. All are good for you except one; you must not eat the purple fruit; it is poisonous; yet it can be processed to become a medicine that kills cancer cells. There are also a variety of berries and wild vegetables growing in the valley, mostly close to water. Also, nuts and root vegetables. The manual we will be giving you will identify the flora and fauna of the valley. We suggest you spend the next several days surveying your new home and what it can provide you. Don’t hesitate to try
tasting; none will harm you except the purple fruit. Don’t even touch it, for the skin of the fruit will cause a rash wherever it touches your bare skin.
“While you are exploring, start selecting areas you think best for cultivation, one for each family. We will provide you with both aerial maps of the valley as well as geographical maps. You will need no more than forty acres to provide for your own needs as well as a surplus for trade. I will work with you in making those selections. In the meantime, each family will have a tent with sleeping accommodations; those are the tents surrounding this tent. There are tents for showering; one for men, one for women. You will also see a number of latrines, incorporating a dry composting procedure. Please refrain from urinating and defecating on the ground. If away from camp, dig a hole and cover. This is for the safety of the wild life, for you have germs harmless to yourselves that could infect the animals and birds. Our medical staff will soon have you all inoculated against any potentially local virus and bacteria, as well as being treated for any harmful Earth virus and bacteria you may still have.
“Also select a location, again about forty acres in area, for your village center. We suggest where you now are. Try to make it central to each of the chosen homesteads. The first construction efforts will be such things as a warehouse, a food processing plant for local needs, a town hall, a recreation facility, a clinic and a school house, among others. With the help of robots, they will be built from prefabricated units, and in the order of need. During this construction phase, you will build your homes. They will be modest but comfortable abodes with the latest conveniences. Again, robots will help
“Only when you have your habitats will you begin preparing the land for planting. We know that many of you have no experience in farming and many of you don’t really want to be farmers. Consider this a temporary stage in your acclimation to Paradise. You will eventually have opportunities to transfer to the various support industries necessary for when you start harvesting crops. And again, we remind you that the robots assigned to you, along with the robotic farm implements, removes much of the labor from your shoulders. You will basically be managers, assuring that each farm functions smoothly. The Peace Keepers on Earth had a motto for mankind: ‘If you don’t work, you don’t eat.’ That applies here; it would be unfair to others to allow anyone to become what you call a ‘freeloader.’ It would not be fair to others to allow any of you to wander off to live off the land. Depending on age and health, each person will be provided duties within his or her abilities. You can look forward to many years of retirement when you are too old to work.