USS Kepler Dawn

by Gerald Lane Summers

  “Mr. Heartfield,” the captain said. “This is my aide, Lieutenant Commander Andy Kelso. You may have heard of him by his nickname, Stick.” I don’t know what I would have done without him these past few years.”

  “Glad to meet you, Director,” I said, deliberately using his title so as to indicate the respect he ought to deserve.

  Heartfield smiled and extended his hand which I took.

  “Okay, Stick,” the Captain said. “Sit down and tell us what you think?” I pulled up a third chair and took a deep breath.

  “Captains, so far even though the Umon have invited us to stay, we cannot in good conscience continue to deny there is no risk to them or ourselves if we do. We must be honest with them and propose something that will guarantee their safety, even though it is likely our safety would be at the most serious risk. If we do this, I think there is a chance we can negotiate with them to build our colony on the planet, not the satellite. Building there would put our people in close contact with them and as the computer says, that would probably lead to a serious conflict. We have to accept that.”

  Director Heartfield had a snarly look on his face although it did seem he was willing to hear me out. So, I continued.

  “So far, the Umon have been kind enough to invite us to stay on the satellite if we wish but we know ourselves better than they and exactly how predatory the human species can be. So, whatever we do must provide guarantees that can be enforced and which offer them something they need.

  They do not know we understand their powers. It is also true that they cannot possibly know all of ours. Anti-gravity, for example. I’ve seen no sign they understand how that works. So, we should be able to use it in our favor.

  They do know we can control gravity with our engines because they have seen it work on the shuttles. And my instincts tell me they may be afraid of it. In fact, it may be the one thing we could use to defeat their control of the EM spectrum. If that is so, I suspect they may see it as a power to be avoided. We must pretend we think them unaware of it, even knowing it cannot be true.

  Director Heartfield stared at me, a curious look now on his face. “How exactly do you think we could defeat their weapons?”

  “Well, it would be a vast undertaking and take many years to build, but it might be possible to design an antigravity machine large enough to put a bubble shield around the entire planet. That would not help us defeat them, only to protect ourselves. Once outside of the bubble, we would be vulnerable. If it were to be built, I would see it not as a defense against the Umon, but against any other warlike species that might come by. The aliens that attacked the Umon, would be an example. My guess is that they are still out there somewhere trying to figure out how to deal with us.”

  “How likely is that,” Captain Ho asked. “… given that the conflict was hundreds of thousands of years ago?”

  “I don’t know,” I said. We need to learn more about them.”

  Chapter 29

  The crater research team arrived and filed into the conference room just as we were returning from the lounge. Most of them seemed surprised to see so many people gathered together. They obviously had not realized the importance of their expedition.

  Captain Hollenbeck stood to welcome them back. He then asked their leader to report their findings on the planetary crater.

  A woman stood up. I recognized her from one of my classes in geology — Lieutenant Hargrove. She was of medium height with dark hair cropped close, chocolate skin and a modestly thick waist. Her reputation was one of quiet competence, a good scientist who always pondered everything thoroughly before speaking.

  Hollenbeck asked her to tell everyone what her investigative group had found at the site.

  “Captain,” she said. “That crater is not a result of natural processes, either an asteroid or cometary collision. It was caused by a huge nuclear explosion. Very little was left of what was apparently a colony of some sort. We found a few metal shards, mostly melted, and the remnants and outlines of a small underground city. There were some purposefully built caves extending from deep underground and which we thought resembled the nests of some kind of insects, except that they had been exceptionally large. Residual radiation suggests the entire thing was destroyed a half million years ago, plus or minus two thousand.”

  She paused and took a drink of water from a glass on her table. “We also found some fossils in a tunnel fifty miles from the site. A road led to it from the crater and fortunately we were high enough up in the shuttle at the time to be able to see it among the grasses. We would not have thought to look there otherwise.

  Those fossils are of an unknown species that most closely resemble large eusocial Formicidae, or Ants. We have not had time to do an in-depth examination of the fossils although it is clear they were very different from ants on Earth in several respects. They had eight rather than six legs and their antennae were not of the ‘elbow’ type. While at first glance they resembled ants, with eight legs they would have to be classified as partially arachnoid. Spiders also fall into that category. Their bodies were approximately twelve feet in length and all of those we found were equipped with wings. The rear segment of the body was much larger proportionally than a typical smaller ant and the center section was more flexible. The front two legs were not unlike our own arms without the elbows, and capable of very flexible movement.

  Based on everything we saw, it is likely these creatures were modestly intelligent and of the non-independent variety. They would have had a queen that directed all of their activities. And that is what is so strange about the wings. None of the fossils we found were queens and among similar Earth species, queens are the only ones that have wings. So, this adaptation must have been for reasons other than to distinguish the queens from drones or soldiers. Our guess is that it allowed their common defenders and workers to be much more effective when attacking and taking over the hives of other species. Like the ‘army ants,’ of Earth, they were warlike, not staying in one place and always looking to take advantage of the work of other insects and lifeforms. They dominated everything within reach and probably ate everything living they found.

  In light of their variations from Earth types, we have concluded they were a separate species from our army ants, while still showing ‘legionary behavior.’ We see this as a convergent evolutionary pattern not totally unknown to science. In other words, they have evolved to take over traits shown by others to be effective in some manner.

  Several strange looking non AG vehicles also remained in the tunnel along with some boring equipment. The tunnel itself demonstrates that whatever species made it was intelligent and possibly capable of space travel. This left us all with the view that the computer was probably correct about what had happened here.

  We have also conducted a scan of the prairies and discovered residual radiation everywhere. It is currently of insignificant intensity to cause a colony any trouble. In addition to these finds, we think there were large herds of indigenous herbivores at one time that died off with the spread of the nuclear radiation. We have not completely ruled out the possibility that the ant-like insects may have eaten them all. However, that has not been shown with hard evidence.

  The nuclear weapon likely caused what has been known as a, ‘nuclear winter,’ or something similar. If not, then the radiation itself did it. It also killed off many other species, small animals and birds that made up the ecosystem. A few fossils of those animals were found in digs on the opposite side of the planet. The largest looked very much like the bison that inhabited the Earth’s early prairies. The smallest were weasel-like creatures. That’s really all we have at the moment and are excited at the prospect of returning to the field.”

  Captain Hollenbeck stood up. “Okay, Lieutenant Hargrove, well done. This clears up the situation. Now we have to accept a few basic facts. If we cannot negotiate an acceptable agreement with the Umon to allow us to build here on Dawn, we will have to pull out. That is because we consider this planet t
o be within their legal domain. And for those of you who wonder why we must obey our own laws with regard to an alien species, you must back out of your world view and recognize that without our system of laws, we present nothing of value to anyone we might want to call friends.

  We certainly cannot remain on the satellite as long as there is a possibility we might cause the death or destruction of the Umon. That’s just the way it is. We knew from the beginning this might happen and our orders are clear. Under no circumstances are we to establish a colony in a system where another sentient species exists and objects to our presence.”

  The crowd was stunned. For a moment I worried they might object strenuously, but I could see as a few moments went by that they were coming around. What was the point of building out a colony that had a high likelihood of being destroyed before it could accomplish anything of substance? Still, for the most part it looked as if a dark cloud had descended upon the entire establishment.

  “Do not despair,” the captain said. “We do have some ideas that might be acceptable to the Umon. We will be going down to the satellite tomorrow to meet with them to see what they think of our proposal.”

  The meeting was adjourned with the admonition that everyone consider the facts as now known and volunteer ideas if they came up with anything worth discussing.

  As we were leaving, Commander Herman managed to intercept Commander Sykes and divert him away from Miki. I took Miki by the arm and we left to resume our duties for the day. Eventually, after stopping in the lounge to relax, as had become our habit, we headed back to our bungalow.

  Miki was unusually taciturn. It was not her way, so while we were undressing for bed, I asked her to explain. She was reluctant to do so. Nevertheless, I decided to persist.

  “How can I help if you lock me out?” I asked.

  “You can’t,” she said, but then started walking back and forth. I knew she was building up to something, so I her left to her own thoughts. She sat down at our small kitchen table and ordered a cup of coffee from the synthesizer.

  “Consider this,” she said. “I am very sympathetic to the Umon, and while I am sure you and the captain will come up with something that might work for a period of time, we all know our relationship with them is doomed to failure. There are too many here who would just as soon kill them rather than allow them to interfere in any way.”

  “Yes, and I think there is only one way to assure that it does not happen. We must make these objectors dependent upon the Umon for something they cannot get elsewhere. I’ve noted, for example, that the colonists have no idea what kind of economy they are going to set up. There is no money or other means of exchange, so it is possible the Umon could supply something they could use for that. And we could also be looking for something we could supply to the Umon.”

  “Even so,” she replied. “At some point, those exchanges will peter out and they will have to look for something else. A war could break out once the system of exchange broke down, and it will.”

  “Possibly,” I said. “There is no reason, from my point of view, why we could not be anticipating all that and working to overcome the problem before it got out of hand. Surely, it would be in no one’s interest to allow that to happen. After all, the same sort of economic challenges existed on Earth for millennia and somehow they managed to survive it all.”

  “Yes, unfortunately destructive wars kept breaking out in the process. Why do you think we are here? It was because humans so polluted the Earth that they knew they would no longer be able to survive on the surface.”

  “True, however it is a fact that during those warlike periods, with all sides pretty much equal in strength, no one was wiped out completely.”

  “Yes they were,” she said. “It was not the big guys, but the little people who suffered the most. And it certainly was not the historians.”

  I pondered this for a moment and asked the million dollar question. “Is that not the way of humanity, to continue a replenishment of the species through war?”

  Miki looked at me with disgust. “Many philosophers have suggested that and I don’t think it has ever been true. The problem with it is the means to destroy has always exceeded the ability to control. And, of course, there is no historical evidence that any war was started for that purpose. It just happened that in the end, the smaller populations benefited both. Here, now … we have the possibility of both sides developing and using weapons that could literally destroy everything. And I am afraid it could not be controlled. We know that at any time, the Umon could sneeze hard in the wrong direction and wipe out the planet. How could they possibly be deterred from that if our people did something horrible they did not like?”

  “It would have to be mutually destructive. Both sides would have to understand that if they crossed a specific line, both would be destroyed. In the old days, it was called, ‘MAD,” mutually assured destruction.”

  “I’m thinking it must be more than that,” she said. “Both sides must be afraid their primary interests would be destroyed, not their planets. That is a concept too big for most folks to get their arms around.”

  Chapter 30

  The following morning we set out in a shuttle to visit the Umon. We did not know exactly where to go other than where we had met them before. In all, we were twenty, composed of several scientists, Captain Hollenbeck, Commander Smith, Commander Herman, myself and Miki. From the Kennedy, Captain Ho, Commander Sykes and three of their crew with specialties in economics decided to join us. Geologist Hargrove also requested permission to lead a research team so she could examine the crater known to be there. We planned to drop the science teams off first and then continue to where we’d met the Umon before.

  We waited at the prior meeting spot, sitting for about an hour before we heard the same rustling sounds we’d heard before from within the bamboo. Then the same two Umon appeared. Both were excited and started with the jelly-like shaking.

  While we were sitting and trying to reestablish communication with them, we heard a loud rumbling sound, not unlike that of a train or a flight of hovercraft approaching. Within a few minutes the sound was accompanied by what I thought to be bamboo crashing to the ground. It continued for several minutes before stopping abruptly. We then heard a weird grumbling sound and the bamboo closest to us began to shake.

  I leaned over and whispered to Miki in an effort to lighten her mood. “Something big this way comes.”

  She glared back at me. “What was your first clue, Sherlock?”

  The brown and grey Umon made screaming noises and scurried off to the right about one hundred yards where they sat alone on the grass.

  Without further warning, two exceptionally large Umon burst loudly out of the bamboo. Both were grayish white and I took that to mean they were much older than the smaller ones. They stopped and stared at us with eyeballs the size of bowling balls on stalks at least four inches thick, not unlike heavy grade hemp rope. After scanning the area, they came toward us moving silently. We stayed where we were, a difficult thing to do with two such monstrous creatures bearing down on us. They were imposing to say the least and close to twenty feet tall. Their bellies bulged all around in a diameter matching their height, yet they moved with a simple grace, almost as if their bodies were gliding above the grass. The eye stalks rotated continuously and I took that to mean they were worried about being ambushed.

  Miki leaned toward the captain. “May I, sir?”

  Hollenbeck nodded.

  Miki stood, turned to the Umon and spoke into her wrist com/link to the ship’s computer.

  “Computer, can you handle communication and interpretation for us?”

  “Yes, Lieutenant. I am on their primary frequency.”

  “Please ask them politely to sit with us. Warn them not to sit too close in order avoid an unintentional reaction from our security protection belts. Tell them we have many things to discuss.”

  “They understand, Lieutenant. Please continue.”

  “Ask
them if they have names or titles we should be using. Tell them that I am Lieutenant Miki Sakura of the Earth Ship Kepler Dawn. One of my specialties is interspecies relations. In other words, I am trained in diplomacy as well as mathematics.

  Please tell them that most of the people here are from Kepler Dawn, which is the very large ship in orbit around the planet. We refer to the planet simply as ‘Dawn.’ Our Captain Hollenbeck, his aide and closest officers are here to my left. To the right is Captain Ho of the slightly smaller Earth Ship Kennedy along with his first officer, Commander Sykes. The others are scientists and experts in many different fields from both ships. Our purpose is to determine if we might establish diplomatic relations with you for the purpose of working together to advance the needs of both.”

  Each of our officers and scientists nodded as their names were mentioned.

  We waited for a moment while the Umon appeared to absorb this information. They then sat down, or rather sank down. As they did so, their bellies expanded outward and came close to reaching us.

  After another moment of silence, the one to our left spoke. We identified him or her by a series of black spots that circled his head. It was almost as if he was wearing some kind of necklace, but it was not artificial. As they sat before us, their eye stalks rotated downward and stared out over us. It was a definitely disconcerting.

  The static of its voice caused us to put our hands over our ears. It understood immediately that it had transmitted its signal too loudly, and quickly moderated its volume.

  The computer spoke: “The Umon apologizes for his volume. And, as for your questions, he says they are the ranking elders who have been authorized to speak for all. The other Umon we have met are children or middle aged adults, he says, who do not have authority to speak for the entire population. Nevertheless, he says they welcome speaking with us to see what it is we want. They say they will not harm you unless you present a threat to them. As for their names, while they do have them, they are personal and are not used outside their closest associate groups. Nevertheless, they would be honored if you were to refer to them simply as, Elders.”