by Jeff Sims
The drilling platform wasn’t being used; the scientists were located in the control sphere. The conversion from mining control sphere to hyperspace charting platform had been straightforward – the Navy had simply dragged the structures to the Waylon system and changed their name.
The Sunflower had fired 3 batches of 2,000 missiles each into hyperspace in three different directions. The missiles constantly sent back their gravity reading. If the gravity spiked, it meant that the missile found a source of gravity. This method was much faster and far more economical than the previous method of charting hyperspace lanes.
The first set of missiles had been fired missiles from Waylon toward Dunron and Hepitila. These missiles found a gravity anomaly exactly where Old Solaria was supposed to be. Captain Solear and Lexxi flew there and found a system exactly where Old Solaria was supposed to be. However, severe radiation limited their ability to scan the planet and prevented them from approaching it.
The scan of the assumed location of Old Solaria revealed only the triangular tip of what appeared to be a being-made structure. They were unable to verify whether it was the top of a pyramid or simply a large stone that had been oddly weathered.
Despite this, the team announced to the universe that they had found Old Solaria. Their reasoning at the time was that the planet was in the correct location, suffered from severe radiation per legend, and had some proof of earlier habitation. The Solarians rejoiced when they received the news and invited the scientists to be the guests of honor in a worldwide celebration.
Lorano chose an interesting target for the next batch of missiles. The first 1,000 missiles were targeted directly at the planet Solaria and the second 1,000 were targeted just below Solaria. This set was intended to find and chart the exact location of the gravity anomaly that had bothered their navigation system during their original hyperspace jump from Conron to Earth.
This batch of missiles did indeed locate a gravitational anomaly. Lorano was convinced that it was an undiscovered system and was anxious to go there and investigate. However, they couldn’t leave until the experiment concluded.
Lorano decided to essentially waste the third and final set of missiles. He programmed courses that would send the missiles in a broad arc away from all known systems. This area of space to his knowledge had never been explored.
He set the self-destruction timer on the missiles for 50 hours. After 50 hours, the signal would be so faint that the equipment would have severe difficulty tracking the missiles. Further, 50 hours was well beyond the range of a ship’s jump engine. Lorano doubted they would find anything, but thought it would be fun to try.
The missiles were 33 hours into their 50 hour hyperspace journey. Although they only had seventeen hours of flight time remaining, because of the 10 – 1 time distortion in hyperspace, it would take another 170 hours (or 7 days) to finish tracking them. Further, it had ceased to be fun a long time ago.
So far, the missiles had found nothing in this particular direction. However, that failed to change over the course of the day.
Lorano summarized, “The last batch of missiles appears to be a complete and utter waste of time. It seems we spent the last 14 days here for nothing.”
Carank responded, “Yes. However, no one has ever looked in that area of space before. It was certainly worth a try.”
Lorano nodded. They had had this conversation many times over the course of the last two weeks. He said, “Let’s cut the experiment short. We have just enough time to investigate the mystery system before we head to Solaria.”
This wasn’t the first time Lorano had suggested this course of action. By Carank’s count, it was the 27th. He had said no the 26 previous times, explaining that they had to finish the research and delete all of the programs before leaving. They couldn’t let the computers and/or the results of the searches fall into unscrupulous appendages.
This time though Carank changed his answer. He replied, “Let’s download all of the information we have gathered thus far to our personal com pads. Next, we will delete all of the files in the main computer. Then we can turn off the automatic data recording. If one of the missiles detects anything during the last 17 hours, we will have the computer send the information to the navigational beacon. No one would look for the information there.”
Lorano asked, “What about the hardware? What if someone arrives in the system?”
“Simple,” Carank responded, “If the navigational beacon detects a ship in the system other than the Buzzkill or the Sunflower, the computer will wipe its operational code and reboot. The hardware is useless without the tracking software.”
They took just under 3 hours to write the necessary programs, pack their luggage, and load the corvette Buzzkill. Lorano set the course for the nearest point outside Waylon’s gravity and engaged the plasma drive.
It took 6 hours to fly to the nearest point where they could jump out of the system. It was also the location they had used to launch the hyperspace charting missiles and the location where Solear and Lexxi had departed for Old Solaria. Therefore, they weren’t too concerned about jumping from there.
Lorano had become rather adept at manually calculating hyperspace jumps. He typed a false set into the navigational computer, ran a simulation, and confirmed them. Then he typed in the correct coordinates for the 6 hour jump to the uncharted system and engaged the hyper drive.
They exited hyperspace and Carank activated the passive scanners. Since nothing of interest had happened in the system for the past 8 hours, or for that matter the last 800 years, the passive scan was able to build an accurate picture of the system relatively quickly.
The system’s sun was classified as a G3, about the same size and luminosity as the Earth’s sun, but just a touch cooler. The system contained 7 planets total, 5 solid core planets spread out fairly close to the sun and two gas giants farther out.
Lorano exclaimed, “There’s a ZOKAJA!”
Carank wasn’t thinking very clearly at the moment and responded, “What is that?”
Lorano entered lecture mode and responded, “The acronym, my uneducated partner, stands for circumstellar habitable zone.”
Carank interrupted his lecture and said, “Wouldn’t that be CHZ?”
Lorano laughed and continued, “Yes, in Alliance Basic it would be CHZ I suppose. Sorry, I used the Altian acronym. Anyway, the habitable zone is the range of distances from a star where a planet’s temperature allows liquid water oceans. The ability of a planet to create and sustain water as a liquid is the key to its habitability.”
Lorano paused and continued, “Well, one that doesn’t require significant terraforming that is.”
Carank began studying the scan. He said, “The planet sits .98 astronomical units from the system’s sun, or just about the same distance that Earth is from its sun. Further, the planet appears to have an atmosphere.”
Lorano corrected Carank by saying, “.2 astronomical units is roughly 3,000,000 kilometers. All things being equal, the temperatures on this planet should average 3- 5 degrees warmer than Earth.”
Carank was thrilled. The odds of finding a planet in the habitable zone was about 1 in 4. Finding one with an atmosphere and possibly capable of supporting life is much, much smaller, about 1 in 328.
Carank completed his review of the passive scan and said, “We can’t learn much else unless we get much closer and actively scan the planet.”
Lorano replied, “We still have time, provided we take a more direct route we take from here to Solaria?”
Carank: “Meaning?”
Lorano: “Meaning that we have the navigational data required to jump from here directly to Solaria. If we go directly there, we can shave just over 10 days from our journey.”
Carank added, “That also means that we now have the ability to jump from Solaria to Earth. We have essentially created a new hyperspace lane.”
Lorano said, “True, we will have protect that information. We will have to be careful when we an
nounce that we found this system to only give it in relation to Waylon.”
Carank: “Do you think that is wise? Perhaps we should give it in relation to either Conron or Solaria or even Uselon. I don’t know if we really want beings in Waylon.”
Lorano: “True.”
Carank was a touch surprised by the succinct response. He said, “Switching subjects, what do you think we should call the system?”
Lorano: “Well, we have something of a conundrum. By standard naming convention, we should name it Lorlon after me or Carron after you. Or we could combine the letters and get something like Localon or possibly Caloron.”
Carank said, “Hmmmm…” for a moment and replied, “I like the sound of Caloron. It has a certain ring to it, don’t you think?”
“I don’t know,” replied Lorano. “Localon is my favorite so far.”
Carank: “I suppose it doesn’t matter. If the system has a habitable planet, then the system will be named after the race that gets possession of it.”
Lorano put his fingers up one at a time and said, “Altian 4, Advranki 4, Solaria 2, and Earth 2. Maybe we could split the planet 4 ways.”
Carank: “Yes, we could take one letter from each race’s home planet and average the numbers. Let’s see…” Carank thought for a moment and continued, “I guess that would make it Asea 3.”
Lorano said, “Perhaps we shouldn’t count our planets before they are habitable.”
Lorano plotted a hyperspace course to the planet. The planets were roughly aligned at the moment and the planet in question was in front of the others. It was similar to a runner in the third lane of a circular track being in front of his competitors.
This planetary configuration allowed them to plot a hyperspace course that let them to avoid the gravity waves of all of the other planets. The net result was that they were able to micro jump almost the entire way to the planet.
He announced, “We’re in luck. There is a clear path to the habitable planet. We can make an 4 minute micro jump and only have to travel 20 minutes at .02 light to reach the outskirts of the atmosphere.”
Lorano engaged the drive and the corvette Buzzkill made the brief jump to the outskirts of the planet. They continued at .02 light until they reached the outer atmosphere. Lorano activated both the passive and active scanners. He immediately noted that they had jumped the light because the passive scanners still showed the Buzzkill on the far side of the system.
Carank looked over and said, “You would think that the computer would have the sense to recognize itself and adjust accordingly. It shows us as being in two places at once.”
Lorano responded, “Perhaps that can will be subject of your next research project. I could put in a recommendation for you at the Academy of Sciences.
The computer must have interpreted the comment as a command them because the shadow image of the Buzzkill suddenly disappeared from the scan several minutes before it should have.
Carank laughed and said, “See, problem solved.”
The Buzzkill began a detailed scan of the surface. Lorano checked the navigation systems and said, “It will take the ship about 4 hours to complete the full rotation around the planet.”
Carank responded, “Computer, display the first set of pictures and scan readings on the main monitor.” Both Lorano and Carank turned their attention to the scans.
Lorano said, “Computer. Please give an initial summary.”
…The planet has a diameter of 6,272 km (3920 miles). Its mass is 97.2% of the intergalactic standard mass of Advranki Prime. The planet has one moon, located 368,000 kilometers (230,000 miles) from the planet. It has a diameter of 1,638 km (1,024 mi)…
Carank said, “So, the planet is about the same size as Advranki 3.” He thought for a moment and continued, “Actually, both the sun and moon are similar in size to the Earth and its moon.”
Lorano corrected him, “Technically, this planet is about 1% smaller than the Earth and its moon is about 5% smaller than the Earth’s moon.”
Carank responded, “Proving my point that they are about the same size.”
…The planet has an atmosphere that is 77% nitrogen, 22% oxygen, 1% argon, and the rest are trace elements. It has an atmosphere and an ocean of liquid water…
Lorano said, “Well, that is great news. The atmosphere is in the breathable range by all species. We have actually found a habitable planet.”
Carank said, “We should land and walk around. We will be the first beings to step on this planet.”
Lorano: “I agree. However, we don’t have the equipment to perform a full evaluation of the air, water, and soil. What if there are microbes that kill us the moment we breathe the air.”
Carank responded, “Good point. However, we have pilot flight suits aboard. We can wear them while we are on the surface.”
Lorano continued / interrupted, “Yes. We could collect samples and evaluate them when we return to Waylon. Or, if we are lucky, perhaps we will be able to locate a lab on Solaria and perform the analysis there.”
Carank said, “Well, do we have any equipment on board that we could use to analyze anything?”
“Of course we have…” Lorano started speaking, but his voice trailed off mid-sentence. Lorano remembered that he hadn’t packed any technical equipment. Further, they had only discussed what to bring to Solaria. He hadn’t until this very moment thought about what he would need to investigate a planet.
Lorano continued, “Actually, I have no idea what we have on board. Weren’t you responsible for packing the technical equipment?”
Carank refused to answer the question. Instead he said, “Let’s search the ship. I will take the front half, you take the back.”
They separated and Lorano went directly to engineering. He searched for some piece of portable or even semi-portable piece of equipment that could be detached and taken to the planet. He could use a portable scanner or possibly even something to collect samples.
Lorano found nothing in engineering, so he searched all 5 cabins. The first two were completely empty. The third was his room and was bereft of anything useful. He checked Carank’s room and found nothing helpful. He searched the last room and found a cosmetic kit.
Once again, the item he needed was in the last place he looked. However, he went ahead and inspected one additional room just so it wouldn’t be in the last place he looked. It was important to go above and beyond sometimes.
Lorano yelled “Jackpot” and returned to find Carank.
Carank was returning and Lorano met him at the control room. Lorano held up the cosmetics kit and said, “We can dump the make-up and wash the vials. They can hold the water and soil samples at least. I don’t think they are air-tight, so we won’t be able to collect an air sample.”
Lorano noticed that Carank was carrying something, so he asked, “What did you find.”
Carank held it up for inspection and replied, “It’s a Model 542.26.19 label maker.”
“Impressive; we will be the first beings to discover and properly label a new planet,” said Lorano. He overstressed the word ‘and’.
Carank responded, “Well, I was hoping for a Model 345.22.14 diagnostic computer, but this is what I found. Who knows, it may come in handy.”
Lorano’s retort was interrupted by the computer.
…An artificial structure has been detected on the surface…
Carank: “Computer, show the camera image of the structure on the main monitor.”
The computer showed a large structure. It was difficult to see clearly because the ship’s cameras were partially blocked by the planet’s cloud cover.
Lorano approached the monitor and squinted, trying to find the object. He highlighted and enlarged an area, but it was still unable to get a clear enough image to determine the object. He tried a different path. “Computer, create a visual image based on the results of the scan.”
The computer built a model based on the scans and displayed it on the main monitor. Both Ca
rank and Lorano looked at the image. Lorano started to speak, but Carank beat him to it.
Carank said, “Okay, so we aren’t the first beings to find this planet.”
Lorano responded, “I see your power of observation is as astute as your intellect.”
Carank ignored the insult and said, “Okay, you are supposed to be one of the smartest Altians alive. Why don’t you explain why there is an Altian energy pyramid on an undiscovered planet?”
Lorano responded, “Altian inspired certainly. However, it will require closer inspection to determine whether or not it is actually an Altian pyramid.”
Carank said, “Look, the scan shows the pyramid is roughly 4,000 years old. Who else could have built it?”
Lorano responded, “Humans built pyramids on Earth about the same time.”
“Are you suggesting that Humans somehow managed to travel through hyperspace 4,000 years ago, randomly built a pyramid here, and then returned to Earth? I think that is extremely implausible,” responded Carank.
Lorano: “No. I am not suggesting that Humans built it. I am just stating that there may be another answer and we shouldn’t, we shouldn’t…What was that Earth saying you were so fond of, we shouldn’t leap over the ending?”
Carank responded, “I think it was jump past the conclusion.”
Lorano continued without acknowledging the clarification, “Pyramids are fairly common design elements. A civilization could have arisen here and then died off, leaving this pyramid as the only proof of their existence.”
They impatiently waited the remaining 1 ½ hours for the ship to complete the full rotation of the planet. The scan showed that there were several vast forests on the planet and that they were populated with wildlife – though nothing larger than a fox. There was no evidence of an intelligent, native species. At this point the pyramid was the only thing of interest to the scientists.
Lorano guided the corvette through the atmosphere and down toward a large plain area. The plain was relatively close to the pyramid and could function as a landing site. The ride down was shaky, due more to Lorano’s poor piloting skills than the planet’s atmosphere.