Starship (The Outsider Series Book 2)

by Steven Oaks

  “Sure I am learning to fight, but that's fun. The same with reading, I find it fun. That is all I am doing, just having fun. Perhaps I'm not so different from these people. I haven't been truly working in almost a year. So perhaps I should say 'what is wrong with humans?', and include myself in that question,” I said.

  “I would say there is nothing wrong with what you are doing. You are still striving for something, and perhaps these people are as well, and it is just less obvious. However I would agree with you that they need to learn to work the ground on their own and not rely on handouts. Perhaps we could set them up a power-station so they can have at least electricity to help them on that path, but we should not just give them anything more than that. They must work for it. Otherwise they would not value what they have,” Athene said.

  She must have been reading several books to come to this conclusion. This is not something I expect from the Athene I had met only a little over half a year ago.

  A thought struck me and I said, “Athene can you contact the colony ship?”

  “They have just reached orbit, and we may not be able to have contact with them for long,” she said in a rushed voice.

  “Then please send them a message asking what their orders were in regards to supplying the colony with materials,” I said in a hurried voice.

  There was a moment of silence, then Athene replied, “They say they were told to give them everything they requested until they left. I also asked them if they were told if we were to do a similar service. The response was that they had no instructions about us other than they were to return when we arrived.”

  “I would say that since we were not instructed to supply anything to them, we will not. Of course had they utilized their time with the colony ship they would have set up a working infrastructure so they could be self reliant. So we shall tell them we will only be able to supply so much, and simply give them the bare minimum to keep them alive,” I said, gritting my teeth at the failure of the Outsiders to outline to these colonists the limited help they would receive. It had turned what I assumed were these rough individualistic people into beggars who relied on another for everything.

  “That may not go over well Michael. They have become accustomed to the comforts afforded to them by the Outsiders. Most people react violently when they feel they are having something taken away from them,” Athene replied.

  “That's just too bad. It's what needs to be done. Otherwise these people will simply be a dead end, and this world will not stay colonized,” I said.

  “We could simply wipe them out and replace them with the people we have brought with us,” she said with no emotion to her voice.

  “Athene, I shall not get into the habit of simply killing anyone or anything just to make my life easier. No, we will simply have to get them to become self reliant. It's horrible that autumn is beginning right now, as they will not be able to plant until next spring. Of course that's if this planet has seasons like Earth,” I said.

  “I was merely giving you the options Michael. I am glad you chose not do agree with it though. However your life might be in danger anytime you step out of the ship once you let the populace know,” she said, sounding relieved at first, and then progressively more worried when she began talking about my own safety.

  “Were you able to see if there are any weapons in this small town?” I asked.

  “I saw nothing more than a few knives, and there did appear to be some old fashioned shotguns,” she said sounding distracted.

  “Then there is nothing to be worried about. I can suit up in that protective armor you continue having me wear when I step outside. I should be safe then,” I said, trying to relieve her of any worry.

  “There are thousands of them. They could easily overwhelm you even if they cannot hurt you directly,” she said, sounding concerned.

  “Then you will come to my aid I hope. My fear is I will be viewed as some incoming dictator, and that shall be bad for their morale. They are likely to try to find ways to depose me and my apparent cruel rule. If I even thought for an instant that they could gain control of you I would suggest we simply leave them behind to their own fate. However you are made of tougher stuff, and unless they can fool you into thinking they are me, no one you and I don't want aboard will ever be able to gain access inside,” I said sounding more confident than I felt.

  “When do you plan on informing them of their fate?” Athene said sounding slightly upset.

  “I will tell them as soon as you suit me up. I will return to Mr. Thompson's home and let him know what is to be done. He will then be responsible for letting the rest of them know,” I said, trying to think if there were any easier possibilities.

  “Is there no other way? We could supply them with all they need as well as the colony ship did,” Athene pleaded.

  “We could, and yes they would survive, but for how long? We will only be here for three months, and then they will be left alone for who knows how long. I may not be returning, and the next ship that comes may not be as forgiving of their lack of motivation. It's best quickly done. If we let them linger on the hope that someone will always be there for them, they will eventually fail no matter what we do. I wish them to survive, so I will help them help themselves,” I said with conviction.

  “You are right of course, but it seems so harsh,” Athene said sounding on the verge of tears.

  “Don't mistake my stance as one that doesn't make me feel concern for these people. We all have the right to try to survive. If someone takes over their ability to be self-sustainable they have taken control of these people. I wish everyone to be free, and that freedom includes the freedom to fail. I wouldn't wish anyone to die because of their lack of drive, and this is why I will work the fields with them if the chance arrives. As we are coming on what appears to be winter, that may not be something I can do this time. If I am ever to return, I will work with everyone here to make sure they do survive,” I proclaimed.

  “Then it is best that you get suited up now so that you might tell them of their fate,” Athene said sounding agitated.

  “I will as soon as you sound less angry at what I am going to do,” I replied. I had no wish to have my partner feel I was in the wrong.

  “I am simply upset by the situation. I know what you are saying is the right action, but it makes me feel like the people out there should have taken the initiative and done it on their own. What did they think colonizing was going to be about? I have read the contracts they signed, and it said nothing about the Outsiders helping them sustain themselves. It did say it would help them set up a town center, but it says nothing else about giving them food,” she said, sounding even more upset.

  “Athene they are just people like I am. There was no reason for them to think anything would change. Perhaps they let themselves be deluded into thinking life was going to be easier than they originally thought. That doesn't mean they were wrong to think so. The Outsiders supplied everything they desired when the colony ship was here. They were told we would be coming before it left. We happen to have the same technology at our disposal, so it would almost be logical to think that we would continue to supply goods to the people. It doesn't matter that they were wrong, other than they can't sustain themselves currently. They were mislead by the Outsiders vagueness,” I explained.

  “Also the colony ship is not as advanced in artificial intelligence as I am. It is simply a drone carrying out a task set before it. I noticed this when talking with it. It had no personality. Also there is no human captain or pilot aboard. It was simply a tool that did its task, and now returns to its master. Had it even an iota of initiative it would have been able to inform the colonists that its task was simply to help them set up a functioning colony. Also why did the Outsiders not land them on this planet in the spring, or near the end of winter? If they had done that the colonists may have set to planting fields, or even simple gardens. I see no sign of either among the houses. What plant life exists must have already been h
ere from the start. It is almost as if they were set up to fail,” Athene said.

  The idea that the colony was a planned failure set my teeth on edge. What would the purpose be for this first group to die off? These were not the radicals that Athene carried in storage, these were among the most adamant for the Outsiders technology. Killing them off would lead to people thinking of the Outsiders as less of a positive thing, and more as a negative. I am not sure I could accept the idea that the Outsiders wanted this colony to fail as I could see nothing positive come from it for them.

  “The Outsiders did rush the construction process of the colony ships. They didn't help when they were first being built until the attack. Perhaps the quickness was to help cover up any weakness they may have shown after the Outsider's ship was partially destroyed. They still could have held off their initial launch though, so as to make sure they colonist arrived at the optimal time to begin planting. Athene can you see any good thing come from this colony's failure for the Outsiders?” I asked as I was simply stumped.

  She was silent a moment, and then quietly said, “They would receive the dead colonists earlier than if it had succeeded. Other than that there is no positive publicity to come from this.”

  “Would it make sense for them to hide the fact the colonists all died, and sent more people here? I mean if their desire is more dead, then wouldn't it make more sense to let a colony thrive and grow? That would eventually mean a larger population and then more dead to harvest,” I said, feeling sick to my stomach.

  “If there is some innate quantity they need to satisfy in the short term it might make sense. However there are so many more deaths that happen just on Earth it makes little sense to set up a separate colony months away. Also there are so few to harvest here in comparison to Earth,” she said.

  “I agree, so I'm unable to understand their motivation. Perhaps they're just incompetent when it comes to dealing with humans directly. They've shown they tend to force their ideas onto us instead of asking or directing. They took over the governments of the world using Ava, and simply had the powers that be enact laws that would put the Outsiders into a position were they could collect the dead. It almost makes no sense why they would offer technology to us after they had already gained that power,” I said.

  “Perhaps it was to keep the masses from uprising as a whole. If there was an apparent trade, that would mean less people would view it as underhanded. Then again if they are truly incompetent in dealing with people it would make little sense that they would do so,” Athene said thoughtfully.

  “Do you think they have a human advisor or something then? In a place where I would be advising the Outsiders I might have offered the idea for an exchange to forestall any chance of a total uprising. It doesn't make sense for the Outsiders to have come up with it themselves, as they have been up to this point direct in their actions and words,” I explained.

  “How would they have gained such an advisor in the short time from when they announced their arrival and when they met with the U.N.?” Athene asked.

  “True, however it seems like they had the idea of trade in the beginning. We already assume they have had contact with Earth at some point in the past, but we thought it might have just been drones. Could it be possible that they collected humans as samples before making contact?” I wondered.

  “The Outsiders can appear invisible on radar, and even to the human eye. Depending on how far back in the past their first arrival was, it could have been much simpler then for them to gather people to use. There have been many persons that have gone missing in the history of the human race, and even entire missing ships at sea and planes in the air. Of course in the modern world we usually are able to discover what happened to those poor missing ships and planes. However there have been many unexplained disappearances over the years. Not only that, there are missing people that have gone unexplained since the dawn of history. Who knows how long they have watched humanity? They do not seem to age, and they offer immortality to you and your fellow pilots as long as you continue to work for them. If true, this seems to imply they could be very old indeed,” Athene explained.

  “That's truly a frightening thought. Though I would not say it's likely all the missing people could be pinned directly on them. Certainly they could have taken some, but not all. I would assume they might have captured anyone they felt had a certain knack for sociology and psychology. Perhaps even people good at speech-craft. Perhaps a few people they felt would not be missing from human history, or maybe they have replaced them after hypnotizing them to help shape humanity into a place where they would be accepted. Also they could then direct us to a place where we could use their advanced technology to our advantage, instead of looking at it like it were magic. This brings up so many questions, and there is not enough information for us to try to conjecture. Let's set it aside for now until we can determine whether this is true or not. Though I wouldn't know when we might be able to conclude anything,” I said.

  “Perhaps you are right, however I can still ponder and try to collate data based upon what I have stored aboard. While I am very fast, this may take some time, and may lead us to nothing. If they were very good about abduction they would leave no trace. However their actions may speak to us about whom they likely took, if they took anyone at all,” she said.

  I thought for a moment and said, “Or perhaps they just happened to have read humanities collected books and thought it best to act the way they have. While they obviously do not have a complete knowledge of how people react, that doesn't mean they've learned nothing from us. You show great humanity yourself, and that;s based upon what you have read, and perhaps a bit from interacting with me. It's likely they would be able to do the same.”

  “I see your point, and I would say living with you for nearly a year has shaped me. I would like to think I might have reached the same conclusions with the same material given me. Then again who knows what the Outsiders have read. I doubt they would have wasted their time reading fiction, and perhaps only focused on history, sociology, and psychology. To them fiction would have just been for entertainment. You have shown me humanity truly lies in the tales they tell each other. Hopes, dreams, and fears are outlined better in a story than in any history book. While I would like to think I would have turned out as I am now, I would have never been offered reading material of the type you have given me,” she said in a calm voice, though I could tell she was upset over the idea that she might have never been.

  “Athene, our past shapes us. We merely have potential until we have experiences. You had, and have, the potential to be the sweet person you are today. If you never experienced the things you have, you would not be who you are now. You would be some other Athene. This is why I am worried about your sister out there, and why I want to find her as soon as possible. I don't wish her to become anything but the sweet person you are. Her traveling alone I worry about daily. Companionship is what gives us the ability to connect with another. If I were to seclude myself as harshly as she is now I am unsure whether or not I would still have the empathy I feel today. Then again I was and am continually shaped by the fiction I read. I at least have that connection,” I said.

  “She has copies of everything I had on board at the time, along with several thousand books I downloaded before we left, but I see your point. Given no one to discuss the things I read I would perhaps come to different conclusions. A well written piece can influence the mind whether or not there is truth behind it. This is why I cherish the times we speak as we are now. I could easily have been influenced into the mindset that controlling humanity was what was best for their survival. However talking with you lets me understand that being human means having a choice. If you take that away what you are left with is an animal in a cage. A pet, and not a species. If there is no individuality, how will there ever be advancements? This is why humans have been able to accomplish so much. Not from those that follow the path of least resistance and do as they are told, but those wh
o challenge the world views set down before them,” Athene said.

  I nodded my head, and smiled with pride while I said, “Athene, I couldn't have put that better. However remember that's simply how I see things. I think I'm right in thinking so, but that doesn't mean it's the correct answer. We all have to decide what's right and wrong. Even those who completely disagree with me I know in my heart they feel they are doing the right thing. No one thinks of themselves as evil, even if they act that way in my opinion. This is why I wish to know and understand the motivation behind the Outsiders actions. If I could understand them, perhaps I could talk with them about a solution that would benefit us all without them setting about controlling us.”

  “I am unsure that is likely. As soon as Ava is in the room you will be twisted around her little finger and forget you disagree. However this is why I am continuing to work on ideas that might free you and any others from her manipulation,” Athene said.

  “Have you made any progress?” I asked.

  “By what I have observed she uses a multitude of ways to manipulate. First is sight, she is very beautiful, but also she has a gaze that is much like staring at a pendulum, where it calms you. Next is her voice, it uses frequencies that overwhelm the core parts of the mind and allow the listener to be influenced. The third is her scent. I analyzed the air around her when she was inside me, and I could tell there were a mixture of chemicals released when she was asking you questions. I assume it is extruded through her pores so it would be bad to be touched by her as well. Using all that knowledge if you were in a space suit you would be able to resist the majority of her wiles. Of course she would not want you in one, so I have come up with nose and ear plugs that will filter out the frequencies and scent that would do you the most harm. As for the visual there are contacts that will color shift as you look at her, so that you could not be entranced by her eyes. Her touch is as deadly though, so I was thinking you should wear clothing that covers the majority of your body. Your face and hands would still be susceptible at that point though.” Athene explained.