Humble Beginnings (Tri System's Edge Series Book 1)

by Ron Schrader

  Both he and his son wore large backpacks stuffed to the seams while carrying between them the large trunk the doctor had refused to leave behind in spite of its awkward size and weight. Rather than argue with him, Seth simply played the part of the good son and had helped his father during this difficult time.

  The crowd gradually came to a stop in front of a large military tent, awaiting further instruction.

  “Finally!” exclaimed Seth as he quickly set his end of the heavy trunk on the ground.

  Dr. Staves set his end down and began surveying the area. Slightly behind the tent, off to the right and left, he could see dozens of smaller tents lined up in several rows, ending next to what appeared to be a rock wall that shot straight up into the sky. As he stared up toward the top of the cliff, the bright sunlight quickly hindered his view. He lifted his hand to shade his eyes from the sun, and noticed, for the first time, a tower just to the left of the large tent. At once a large-framed man standing in the tower began to speak.

  “Welcome!” bellowed the deep voice of the man standing high above the crowd. “Welcome to Paradise!”

  The crowd, although exhausted from the long journey, began to clap and cheer, knowing their difficult journey had finally ended.

  As the noise from the crowd settled, the man in the tower spoke once more. “I’m Commander Tarin, and it’s my duty to make sure we keep order here.”

  The people in the crowd, Dr. Staves and Seth included, listened intently as the commander continued his welcome and orientation speech.

  “With your group, we have almost three thousand survivors to begin anew.” Pointing to the large tent next to the tower, he went on. “Behind this tent you’ll notice that we’ve already set up many more, but we don’t have enough for all of you individually. You’ll be assigned to share tents with three other people for now. We’ve already started construction on some buildings, however, so we are quickly trying to remedy the unpleasant situation. I expect each of you to volunteer your time, skills, and labor to help us build a city we can all benefit from. Thank you!”

  The crowd cheered once more as the commander made the short descent down the ladder of the tower and disappeared inside the large tent, leaving one of his officers to finish directing each member of the crowd to their tents.

  Ten Years Earlier

  Seth opened the door of the small cabin-like dwelling, entering the recently finished home he and his father now lived in, happy to be done with the camping they’d endured. It had almost been five years since they arrived on Paradise, and with plenty of hard work and effort from all of the settlers, they had managed to build a small city, complete with a medical center, research facility, and two large farms, which were just outside the perimeter wall that surrounded the developing community.

  Although much less technologically advanced than their home-world Cremzen, the new city was coming along nicely in spite of the shortage of skilled manpower. Because of the technology available to them on Cremzen, there were very few who knew how to build, farm, or for that matter, even survive without technology, so it was up to those who did have the skills to educate the rest.

  As Seth entered their new home, he felt a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction knowing the journey here had not been easy.

  “Help me with the trunk Seth,” said the doctor. “It’s just too heavy for me to lift myself.”

  The two lifted the heavy trunk together and carried it into his new bedroom, placing it gently in the corner opposite the doorway.

  “Thank you, son,” he said with a smile. “You’ve been a great help to me here, a blessing really.”

  “With Mom gone, you needed me,” Seth replied, shifting his glance toward the floor slightly. “I still miss her a lot.”

  “I know, son, me too. Still, thank you. I don’t think I’d have survived this without you.” Standing next to the large trunk, he opened it up and began gazing upon its contents.

  “I’ll grab the rest of our things,” Seth said, leaving his father alone to reminisce. Several minutes later, done with the task, he rushed out the door to meet up with friends and do some exploring of the planet.

  ~

  “Hurry up, man. Jev is going to beat us to the top!” yelled Charlie, one of Seth’s two best friends.

  “Chill out!” Seth called back in a relaxed tone as he casually jogged toward his friend. “He needs the head start. We’ll catch him.”

  The two quickly reached the wall of the cliff, the followed alongside it until they reached the large cables that hung down from the steep rock wall, having been bolted into the solid rock plateau above.

  “So we workin’ or playin’ today?” Seth asked as they reached the cables.

  “The commander is pushing to get more mapping done, so it’s work for today, but that doesn’t’ mean we can’t still have fun. So get your gear on. Jev’s got to be fifteen meters up the cable by now,” said Charlie as he looked up the smooth rock wall, clearly irritated they were losing the imaginary race to the top.

  “Just go without me, you big baby,” Seth replied, a big smile on his face. “I bet I still beat you.”

  Charlie nodded, did one final check of his harness, attached his pulley to the cable, and began his ascent to the top.

  Seth took his time, making sure his harness was secure before finally latching on to a neighboring cable. He looked up at his two friends, confident that he’d still be the first to finish the climb.

  Unlike his two friends—Jev the large ox of the three, and Charlie with a medium, muscular build—Seth was wiry and toned, which made him a natural climber.

  He pushed off from the ground and began pumping the pulley bars quickly with both hands, moving his small frame rapidly up the cable. With the cliff several hundred meters high, he had plenty of time to catch up to his friends and easily pass them.

  A few hours later, quite exhausted from the workout of the climb, Jev finally reached the top, where Seth and Charlie had been patiently waiting for a good twenty minutes. They both walked over to help their tired friend pull himself and his pack up over the edge of the cliff.

  “It’s just not fair,” Jev grumbled as he shook his head and started to laugh. “You’re both too dang fast!”

  The three laughed and joked with each other while they rested from the tiring climb, preparing to start their hike atop the cliff. They had been working this job together for almost a year now, exploring the tops of the cliff in search of resources as well as mapping the land. Since this was now their home, they wanted to know as much about it as possible, and the cliffs made up a pretty large portion of the landscape.

  “I still don’t get why Commander Tarin won’t just let us use the Ghost up here,” complained Jev. “I’m sure they’ll have the energy station built before we run out of power.”

  “Well . . .” said Charlie, “orders are orders, so we’ll just have to wait till they get it built. Ghosts are no good with dead batteries.”

  “Just another grand day in Paradise!” Seth exclaimed as the three men began their long hike across the flat surface of the plateau.

  One Year Earlier

  The two large farms sat just outside the city, employing close to one hundred people each. They had become two of the more valuable assets to the settlers, providing a much-needed resource for survival—food.

  The farms were separated by an average-sized lake that was fed by a single stream of water originating at the base of the cliff. Aside from it being the only lake fed by a waterfall that had been discovered thus far, the stream and lake made the perfect source of irrigation water for both farms.

  Being a scientist, Dr. Staves had been working with both farms to ensure the best possible methods were used in growing and harvesting such an important resource.

  Although Seth spent most of his time with his friends exploring the planet, Dr. Staves would bring his son out to the farms on occasion to assist with his own research as well as to help transport food and water back home.
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br />   “I still don’t get why you like this lake water more than the stuff from the rivers near town,” Seth commented as he loaded several large jugs into the bed of the six-wheel solar powered ATV his father had acquired from the military for his research.

  “I just . . .” Dr. Staves hesitated for a brief moment before finally finishing his thought. “It just tastes better to me.” He wasn’t ready to share his discovery just yet, but something in the lake had affected the properties of the water, making it a more vitamin-rich liquid. It seemed to help the crops from the farms grow faster and contain more nutrients than they normally would. Although very little research had been done thus far by the doctor, the water appeared to exponentially magnify the properties of living cells. He just didn’t yet know how or why, and so had chosen not to inform the commander or anyone else until he did. He just needed a little more time to sort things out, then he’d let everyone in on the details.

  Seth just shook his head as they drove back to town. “Whatever you say.”

  Three Weeks Earlier

  It was a clear, star-filled night, as Seth lay in the tall summer grass with Nola, kissing her gently, enjoying his newfound romance. The two had met less than a month ago, but it was love at first sight.

  Nola’s long brown hair fell over Seth’s face as she leaned in toward him, forcing him to roll to his back. He quickly reacted, playfully pushing her to his side, giving them both a full view of the beautiful heavens above. The two remained comfortably still as they talked quietly, staring into the night sky.

  “I wish we’d met years ago,” came the quiet, soft words from Nola as she squeezed Seth’s hand a little harder.

  He just smiled, squeezing her hand in return, pulling her close while they quietly enjoyed the view above. Suddenly, a large explosion in the sky drew their attention as a bright mass splintered into hundreds of bright lines in every direction.

  The two jumped to their feet and began to run toward the perimeter walls of the city, a good two kilometers away from where they’d been.

  “What do you think it is?” inquired Nola, a mixture of excitement and concern in her voice.

  “I’m not sure—maybe a meteor shower?” replied Seth. “Let’s find my dad, though. He’ll know.”

  Nola followed as best she could as she struggled to keep up with Seth, who was in better physical condition than most athletes, something that his life here had forced upon him.

  About halfway to the city walls, Seth stopped and turned to find he’d put a good ten meters between himself and Nola, so he stood and waited, watching as she gracefully ran toward him. “I’m sorry, Nola!” he shouted back to her as she slowly moved closer to where he stood. When she finally reached him, he grabbed her hand, swung her tiny frame around to his back, and began running once more, now carrying his sweetheart.

  “You’re crazy!” She laughed, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, trying her best to hang on.

  As he ran, now noticeably slower than before, she leaned her head toward his neck and began to kiss him.

  “I think . . . I think I’m in love with you, Seth,” she whispered softly, just as they reached the city walls.

  Seth stopped and swung her off his back, then turned to face her. “Me too,” was all he said.

  The two hugged briefly, then stared into each other’s eyes for a moment before Seth leaned his face in toward hers.

  Nola met him halfway, and the two kissed under the beautiful light show above as the meteor broke into thousands of pieces in the night sky.

  “We need to find my dad,” Seth finally said with some difficulty, not really wanting the kiss or the moment to end.

  “I go where you go,” Nola replied with a loving smile.

  They held hands as they walked up alongside the city wall, following it toward the main gate, where a guard on duty was positioned in a tower-like platform above and to the right of the entrance. Seth yelled up to the guard, who quickly opened one side of the large gate to let them inside the city.

  As they followed the road to Seth’s house, weaving through the city, passing home after home, it was impossible to ignore the splendor and brightness of what almost seemed like fireworks in the night sky. Each house they passed along the way must have been empty, as it seemed the entire population stood outside watching the performance taking place.

  When they finally reached Seth’s house, it was no surprise to find Dr. Staves standing outside with the rest of the city, watching the sky above in awe.

  “Is it a meteor shower, Dad?” asked Seth intently.

  “Yes, I believe so,” replied the doctor, not taking his eyes away from the light display. “I can’t be certain without a sample of some kind, but I’m sure that’s what it is, though unlike anything I’ve ever seen before.”

  The three sat on the steps outside the small home, watching for over an hour as the light show continued.

  Finally, uncertain how much longer it would last, Nola broke the silence. “I should probably get home, Seth. I have to work early tomorrow.”

  In response, Seth took her hand and stood, pulling her up with him.

  “I’ll walk you home.”

  “I’ll need your help at the farm tomorrow,” Dr. Staves called out to Seth as he and Nola headed down the road to her house.

  A few minutes later, now standing on Nola’s doorstep, the two kissed one last time for the night. Nola then reluctantly pulled away and quietly slipped inside the door, leaving Seth to his thoughts and the magnificence of the amazing night the two had shared. He slowly stepped down to the ground level and turned to walk back home once more, but was interrupted along the way.

  “Isn’t this just incredible!” Charlie exclaimed as he threw his arm around Seth.

  “I know, pretty crazy, isn’t it!” Seth replied, a little startled by the greeting.

  “So how was your night out with Nola?” Jev asked sarcastically.

  “It was . . .” He paused, looking down with a smile before lifting his head back up. “She’s really great, you guys!”

  The two friends continued to tease him as they all laughed and joked.

  “I’m sorry I’ve been spending more time with her and less with you,” Seth finally said as they approached his home.

  “Hey, man, we’re both happy for you,” responded Charlie.

  Jev nodded in agreement.

  “See you guys tomorrow, then?” Seth asked before stepping inside the doorway.

  “Of course!” Charlie called back.

  ~

  When Seth finally awoke the next morning, he found that his father had already left the house. He quickly got himself dressed and headed for the front door. He remembered hearing the night before that his help was needed on the farm today, and as he opened the front door, a note fell to the ground, another reminder written inside. Seth crumpled the paper, a bit irritated about the reminder, and threw it across the room, where it landed near the entrance to his father’s room.

  “He could have at least waited so I didn’t have to walk,” he said angrily to himself as he headed outside, taking special care to slam the door behind him as payback for the long seventeen-kilometer walk he’d be making to the farm.

  It wasn’t until Seth approached the gate that he began to notice the brownish-red dust raining down. Looking up at the guard, Seth couldn’t ignore the dust storm raging outside the city. “Looks bad out there,” he called out to the guard at the gate.

  “Yeah, pretty nasty one today,” came the reply as the large door opened.

  Stepping outside and into the grassy field, Seth froze dead in his tracks, immediately noticing that the thick dust had covered the valley floor as far as he could see.

  After a moment he started walking again, amazed yet slightly concerned about the odd substance that had virtually covered the entire valley floor. As he went farther and farther into the open field the wind seemed to get stronger, blowing the dust more powerfully through the air.

  Feeling a sense
of uneasiness, Seth decided to run the rest of the distance and get to the farm and his father as quickly as possible. He’ll know what’s going on, he thought as he ran.

  Just shy of an hour later, now covered in a mixture of sweat and space dust, Seth arrived at the farm to find his father and several others standing near the small lake.

  As he came closer, Seth quickly recognized that the light blue color of the lake was now a murky brown. He could hear some of the others standing nearby talking amongst themselves, wondering if the water was still safe to drink.

  “What’s wrong?” Seth asked as he approached his father.

  “The meteors last night seem to have burned up in the atmosphere, which explains the dust rain,” replied the doctor. “I’m sure it’s still safe to use, but until the dust settles in the lake, I’m afraid it’s going to look a bit less appetizing.” He then turned to Seth and motioned him to follow as he began heading back toward his small research lab.

  Later that day, Seth walked out to the pump near the lake to get a drink and noticed that the dust seemed to have mostly settled already, much of the normal color of the lake having returned. Seth filled the jug in his hand, and without hesitation, drank the cool water quickly, quenching his thirst and thinking nothing more of the dust.

  By day’s end, over seventy-five people had taken water from the lake to drink, including Dr. Staves.

  Two Weeks Earlier

  Nola stood at the door and continued to knock. It had been three days since she’d seen or heard from Seth, and she was worried. There had already been reports of several farm hands ending up in the medical center with some pretty intense flulike symptoms, so her concern was valid.

  “Seth? Are you in there?” she called out, pounding on the door. No answer. “Seth!” she yelled again, pounding harder. About to pound the door a third time, she finally heard the sound of someone walking to the door.