by Paul G White
The creature projected the thought, Hi, Captain Lessil. I’m glad you seem to have recovered from your injury.
Shocked, Lessil withdrew into his own mind for a moment before commanding Hela to enquire what the large alien had said. Hela conversed with the alien in an incomprehensible language and then replied, “He said, ‘Hi, Captain Lessil. I’m glad you seem to have recovered from your injury’. Hi is an informal greeting amongst these people, Captain.”
Lessil realised his neck and shoulder muscles were under tension, which was forcing his head from the cushioned interior of the cryo-unit. He relaxed back into the comfortable environment and the tension ebbed away. So, Lessil decided, Astronomer Shenna had interpreted the situation correctly; the large alien did possess the seeds of telepathic ability, although how strong it would eventually prove to be was an unknown factor at this stage. He made a mental note to commend the astronomer when he was fully awake and back in command of the Comora.
The large alien spoke again, but verbally this time. “I’m Phil Makeman, Captain. Do you need a hand to sit up?” Makeman offered a large hand to Lessil, and the captain couldn’t fail to notice four fingers plus one opposable digit.
Hela’s translation followed almost instantly, and Lessil rolled the alien name around in his mind for a few moments before reaching out and grasping Makeman’s hand. Lessil said, “Thank you, Phil Makeman,” and noticed that everyone in the huge chamber was avidly observing his interaction with the alien, including the two Sha’lee astronomers.
Makeman helped the Sha’lee commander to his feet and Lessil stood shakily clinging onto the human arm. When he was certain of his balance and strength, Lessil let go. Parel approached and escorted him to a seat beside the wall, accompanied by Shenna and Makeman.
“Are you strong enough to transfer to the refectory, captain?” Parel enquired after fifteen minutes had elapsed. “There, you can receive food and you can meet the leaders of our rescuers. If not, they are prepared to wait . . . until tomorrow, if that is your decision.”
“Escort me to the refectory and I will receive a delegation in my quarters once I have eaten and made myself presentable. As captain, I have a duty to my crew and to the Comora to always look my best.”
“Yes, Captain. Is Phil Makeman permitted to accompany us?”
“He is. I am intrigued by this alien, and will speak with him in the refectory.”
*
Lessil finished the last spoonful of thick soup and asked Makeman, “How did you discover the Comora? Was she on the surface or was she still covered by the mud of the tsunami?”
Makeman glanced at the two astronomers and Parel said, “Please explain everything. Our captain’s mind and emotions are sufficiently stable for him to be given the truth.”
“The truth is, Captain,” Makeman began, “that so much time had passed since the Comora was buried that the mud had turned to rock. As an archaeologist, I was imaging the foundations of an ancient stone building that overlapped the buried ship and I noticed a faint trace of the ship deep underground. Over many months, we excavated the Comora and discovered that the ship had been buried sixty-five million years ago. The meteor impact that killed most of your crew and buried the Comora, also changed the course of life on Earth. The dominant life forms on the planet were destroyed almost without exception, leaving the pathway clear for the creatures which eventually gave rise to my species.”
“So, you do not originate from spacefarers who settled this planet?”
“No, Captain, there are clues within the fossil record that prove our evolution can be traced back well beyond the extinction event.”
Lessil smiled for the first time since awakening. “I was hoping that Sha’lee might claim this planet as a colony world, but that is clearly not possible.”
Shenna and Parel wore stricken expressions and Lessil added, “That was an attempt at humour, but from your reactions it was not amusing. Please continue, Phil Makeman.”
Makeman resumed his tale. “When we had uncovered the Comora completely, we were amazed that the ship was still active. And when Hela finally opened up and invited us aboard, we were able to help in resuscitating Shenna. All the human medical teams are here in case your people encounter problems.”
Parel added, “They made it possible to identify an anomaly related to your injured brain, Captain, and without the assistance of the human doctors, it might have been necessary for you to remain in cold sleep for an even longer period.”
Lessil considered the information for a few moments before saying, “We survivors of the disaster have many reasons to thank our alien friends. Parel will escort me to my quarters and help me prepare to receive them.”
“Captain?”
“Yes, Shenna?”
“May I advise that you cease calling our human friends aliens? This is their planet and on their world, it is the Sha’lee who are the aliens.”
“That is an interesting point, Astronomer Shenna, and I will heed your advice.” With that, Lessil swept out of the refectory, accompanied by Parel.
*
Captain Lessil rose to meet Lars Hendriksson and Mike Carter, Phil Makeman, Parel and Shenna being present already. Hendriksson offered his hand to the starship captain but Lessil hesitated. Shenna projected an image of them shaking hands. It is a form of greeting used by humans, Captain.
Lessil reached out and grasped the director’s hand, solemnly following the ritual and at the same time savouring the touch of human skin on Sha’lee. It was not unpleasant – perhaps a little cool, due to a slight variance in their two species’ body temperatures. In all their wanderings through the galaxy, no Sha’lee, other than Shenna, Parel and himself had made physical contact with an intelligent alien, and he felt a certain pride that the expedition had been under his command.
Hendriksson waited whilst Captain Lessil shook Mike Carter’s hand before saying, “There are many people on Earth who are eager to speak to the captain of the Comora. Many governments wish to send ambassadors and there are thousands of scientists who would like to get involved. However, there is one man I would like to join us as soon as he arrives on site. His name is Juan Hernandez and he is Minister of Antiquities of the State of Belize, which is the country whose guests we are. Since the Comora was first discovered by Phil Makeman, Minister Hernandez has worked tirelessly to provide everything we needed to excavate the ship. Captain, perhaps you should know that our world is divided up into hundreds of countries, some large, some small. Belize is one of the smaller states and I can’t overstate Minister Hernandez’ assistance in facilitating the excavation. Can Hela look out for his arrival and invite him aboard?”
Lessil glanced at Parel and Shenna and after a moment’s communication, he gave Hela the necessary instructions. Then he said to the two astronomers, “It is time to awaken the remaining sleepers, beginning with Hollifal and Cray. Unless you have any reservations, awaken both officers together and then continue to awaken the rest of the survivors in groups of four. Traybaren and Dollen should be amongst the first group. Philip Makeman will remain here . . . if he has no objection. If you find you have need of him, speak to me directly.”
Makeman shrugged. “That’s fine with me. I’m enjoying myself.”
Hela translated the captain’s words for the humans and Parel and Shenna left the staterooms and headed for the cold sleep area.
Captain Lessil turned his attention back to Lars Hendriksson and Mike Carter. He stared at them intently for several moments as if he were attempting to read their facial expressions – an impossible task bearing in mind his limited experience of humans.
Finally, he said gravely, “Doctor Hendriksson, I am the Captain of this starship and am accustomed to the certainties of shipboard life. However, I am disconcerted by the strangeness of the situation in which we Sha’lee have been placed by the vagaries of fate. I would like to make a request, but I am unsure how you will react.”
“Ask away, I’m listening.”
; “As you may know, almost two-thousands of our Sha’lee comrades died in the disaster so long ago. Two others of the initial survivors died during cold sleep. We are a spiritual people, and I wish to commemorate our Sha’lee dead in a ceremony here at the excavation site, which is the scene of the original tragedy. On board ship, a body would be rendered into its component atoms and ejected into space after due ceremony of thanks to the gods of Sha’lee’an. However humans honour the bodies of their dead, I would like the same ritual for the remains of our two comrades, as a symbolic commemoration of all our dead. Can this be done?”
Hendriksson glanced at his fellow humans; both wore expressions of delight. “Whatever else happens, Captain Lessil, I’ll make absolutely sure that your request is granted, and I’m pretty certain Minister Hernandez will think the same way. What you have done, is present us with a touching way to unite all except a few extreme religious factions behind integration of the Sha’lee and humans. Once the various religions on Earth experience your spirituality, I believe all anti-alien propaganda will wither and die.”
Lessil’s irises dilated, indicating his surprise at the instant acceptance of his request. He had anticipated a certain measure of reserve in the humans, but their response suggested that they were spiritual people much like the Sha’lee.
A knock came at the door and Hela announced that Minister Juan Hernandez awaited the captain’s permission to enter. Lessil gave it, and the door dilated, revealing the Minister of Antiquities who was dressed in a dark suit and tie and white shirt. Makeman thought he looked particularly smart for an archaeological site, and Lessil must have received the outwash of his thoughts because he gave Makeman a strange look of appraisal.
Hendriksson introduced the minister and Hernandez shook hands with the captain of the Comora. After a moment, the director told Hernandez, “Captain Lessil has made a formal request to respect the remains of his two dead crewmembers in a human ceremony. I said I would ensure that we grant his request. We have two options, Juan: burial or cremation. I, personally, would favour burial here in Belize if your government finds that to be acceptable.”
Hernandez smiled. “If Captain Lessil agrees, we shall bury his two comrades here at the site of the disaster, and erect a memorial to them and to the rest of the crew of the starship who lost their lives so long ago. In that way, all humanity will remember the momentous event that caused the deaths of so many Sha’lee and helped to shape the future of mankind.”
Captain Lessil was silent, too emotional to comment on the supreme gift pledged to the entire crew of the Comora; for every crewmember, including the few who had miraculously survived, had been victims of the disaster so long ago.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
More than two-hundred thousand people gathered in the cordoned-off area, blanketing the vast bowl of the excavation on one side of the Comora. The memorial service for Tern and Ellisal was being conducted by none other than Pope Nicholas VI, with priests and wise men from all world faiths in attendance. The original members of the archaeological team, along with the first induction of scientists invited to the site, were seated behind His Holiness; and scattered amongst them, the eighteen Sha’lee survivors sat quietly imbibing the flavour of all the human sympathy and no small measure of grief. However long ago the disaster, and whatever your race or creed, the loss of almost two-thousand souls was a dreadful pain to bear. The pontiff made the point most eloquently, and for those few moments Captain Lessil felt a stronger bond of kinship to his human friends than he would have imagined possible, given the differing origins of their two species.
Phil Makeman had been receiving lessons in how to recognise and use his fledgling telepathic ability, but at this moment, he wished he had never heard of extra-sensory perception. The nearness of the eighteen Sha’lee, all wrapped in their own remembrances of lost comrades, was leaving him emotionally wrung out. Shenna, who was seated beside him, placed her hand on his arm and he felt his tension and anguish filter away.
Makeman thanked her silently.
We are friends, she replied, and I will never permit you to suffer unnecessary emotional pain.
Makeman whispered, “Thanks, but I think everyone in the crowd should experience just a little bit of it. Then they’ll know what the Sha’lee are really like.”
Eventually all humans will be telepathic like the Sha’lee, but it may take many thousands of years.
Pope Nicholas VI came to the end of his address and, one by one, the other religious leaders gave their blessings to the memories of the Sha’lee dead. Eventually, it was the turn of Captain Lessil to address the assembled mass. He stepped up to the podium as the pontiff took his seat. As his command of English was rudimentary, he spoke in Sha’lee without a microphone, allowing Hela, the ship’s AI to broadcast his voice over the crowd, followed instantly by the translation in English. At the same time, Hela projected several large holograms of the captain at strategic points, enabling even those most distant from the podium to get a good view of the speaker.
Lessil spread his four-fingered hands wide. With his voice almost breaking though emotion, he said, “My crew and I thank the people of Earth for rescuing us from the ground below our feet. We are grateful for the hard work of all those involved in the excavation, which has enabled us to live again. Even more, we will forever be indebted to humanity for allowing us to remember our dead with a monument so near to where their lives were extinguished by the meteor strike.”
He paused and licked his lips before continuing, “Before we left Sha’lee’an, our civilisation was many thousands of years older than your human civilisation on Earth and our technology more advanced. We wish to share our knowledge with you. We Sha’lee wish to repay a small measure of our debt by offering your scientists and engineers our technology and science. However,” he looked around at the sea of faces, a gesture repeated by the holograms, “most important to me, I wish to invite a crew of humans to journey to the stars with us. Thank you.”
The crowd clapped and cheered, and Lessil sensed the strong feelings of approval.
Minister of Antiquities, Juan Hernandez was next to speak. “When I was first informed of the existence of the spaceship buried deep beneath Belizean soil,” he began, “I must, to my shame, admit I was openly sceptical. But Director Hendriksson and Dr Michael Carter quickly convinced me that my scepticism was misplaced. From that moment onwards I, along with a good many people I have come to know as friends, have ridden a roller-coaster of discovery. But of all the events since the discovery of the Comora, the most amazing and gratifying to me has been not only the survival of eighteen members of the ship’s original crew of almost two-thousand, but also the knowledge that the Sha’lee are so similar to us and in every way equal to the best of humanity.”
He paused and looked around the vast throng. “I have come to regard Captain Lessil and his companions as true friends, and I hope all the people of Earth will do the same. We are here to erect a monument over the mortal remains of Ellisal and Tern, who did not survive cold sleep. This same monument will also commemorate the nineteen-hundred and fifty-one Sha’lee who died in the aftermath of the comet strike, which killed the dinosaurs so long ago.”
His eyes flicked momentarily to his notes before he continued, “What only a few human beings know, is that eighteen people is far too small a number to take the Comora into space to enable the Sha’lee survivors to return to their home planet of Sha’lee’an. We have discussed this problem with Captain Lessil and his crew, and Captain Lessil has presented to the people of Earth an unparalleled opportunity: he has offered us a route to the stars as comrades and equals of the Sha’lee. In my humble opinion, such a venture will provide a tangible and lasting epitaph to the memory of all those explorers who lost their lives so long ago. The complement will be made up of scientists, teachers, technicians, families; in other words, a community – the equivalent of a small township, if you will – to travel unimaginable distances through space for an unknown number of years
.
“Astronomers amongst you will know that in our universe nothing stands still, especially over a period amounting to sixty-five million years; stars move within their galactic neighbourhood, and some even leave altogether. Our Sha’lee friends know that their home world will not have remained where they left it, but from their ancient star charts they are confident they will succeed in locating Sha’lee’an. Everyone chosen for the voyage will be made aware that there is a statistical chance of failure, but that in such an eventuality, other worlds will beckon.” Juan Hernandez gazed around him at the sea of faces and sighed. “I deeply envy those who are chosen to make the journey . . . every last one of them.”
He sat down amidst a silence in which birdsong could be heard far away in the jungle. Then a tiny murmur began somewhere in the crowd and spread like wildfire, until there arose a joyous clamour of approval for the announcement.
*
All eighteen Sha’lee survivors met in the refectory just before midday on the day following the dedication of the memorial to those who had lost their lives. Their purpose: to contact, if possible, a small number of humans possessing embryonic telepathic ability. Lessil had decided that one attempt only would be made, even at the risk of complete failure. In accord with Sha’lee ethics, he reasoned that it would be contra to human development to remove too large a number of potential telepaths from the human gene pool. Shenna, as first to awaken from cold sleep, was accorded the honour of leading the ‘contact’.