USS Kepler Dawn

by Gerald Lane Summers

  I did not argue with Miki when she’d suddenly changed her mind, because I did not want to start out on our first vacation by having a fight. I just wanted to get away and for all I knew, Umon might turn out to be a fantastic experience.

  ∆ ∆ ∆

  Once I gave the order for the computer to take us to Umon, we sat back and enjoyed the view. The ship rose slowly at first and once out of the atmosphere, activated the inertial damping system and accelerated to .05 FTL. We arrived over the satellite in less than a minute.

  I instructed the computer to drop us down to twenty thousand feet so we could study the terrain. There were a few mountain ranges with rivers and trees we might explore if the Umon would allow us to do so, but we were not about to land without their permission. We finally set the craft down at our usual rendezvous and were met by the necklaced elder. He was accompanied by four younger Umon who appeared to be guarding him. That seemed a bit strange, but I decided not to ask about it.

  We connected with the main computer and locked in our interpretive program. “I am in contact with the elder, Commander. You may commence conversation anytime you wish.

  Miki approached the elder while I closed up the ship and locked its doors. I had no reason to do that except that I had a strange feeling all was not well. As I came up on Miki and the elder, I heard her make the request that we be allowed to visit their cities and homes to see how they lived. Her explanation was that she thought we might be able to provide other items for them if we knew what they really needed. A food synthesizer, for example, might be of great help to them as they eventually moved out onto the prairies. And, as far as we knew, they did not have anything like that.

  The elder’s mood seemed to lighten, but I could not put my finger on what caused me to think it. He did nod his head, but the process involved was more like an eyeball dropping and then standing back straight. He suggested we follow him into the bamboo.

  Once into the forest, we realized its canopy of leaves created a shade that blocked virtually all but filtered incoming light. I thought this due to the very thickness of the bamboo grove itself and tried to scan through it for infra-red frequencies. My scanner showed nothing. It was as if we were in a sealed barrel.

  Now I knew how they’d had been able to keep us from knowing where they lived. Heat images could not be observed through these plants.

  The elder slipped effortlessly along a trail and we followed as close behind as we could. It was not easy because he was making good time following the winding trail. Behind us, the four younger guards, if that is what they were, followed. I asked Miki if she had any idea where we were and she shook her head. Even my automatic compass did not work. I realized now why we had been unable to pinpoint a magnetic north as we had first approached the satellite.

  The satellite’s magnetic fields were in a constant state of flux and wandered about randomly. When we’d first scanned them, we had been astounded. The field lines kept moving, never staying in one spot for more than a day. There was no reliable magnetic north.

  We walked for almost an hour before we started hearing noises. I concluded we were approaching a settlement of some kind because the noise was similar to the low frequency humming we’d heard before and was clearly coming from many different voices. Still, I could see nothing ahead until we burst into a clearing.

  The noise increased rapidly and I was force to put my hands over my ears. Miki crunched her face down as if trying to avoid a flurry of sand on the wind. The elder immediately said something to the other Umon, and the noise ceased.

  I bowed slightly in appreciation of their action and asked Miki what she thought of it all.

  “This is one of their gathering places,” she whispered. I don’t think it’s part of a city or one of their homes. In fact, I wonder if they even have homes.”

  “You could be right. My impression is that they are all independent and do what they like when they like. They may only come together when something like our arrival stimulates them to do so.”

  A ring of elders was forming around us and as one, they sank down to the ground as before. We were in the middle of the circle and figured they must want it that way. We sat down cross-legged and Miki started to speak.

  I reached out and touched her forearm. “Wait one, Miki.”

  “Jean-Luk, are you still locked in? We will need you to interpret.”

  “Yes, Commander, just don’t cover up your wrist link. The signal is weak here, probably due to interference from the bamboo. It has peculiar patterns that I have never before encountered.”

  “If you can locate us, bring the ship closer and hover just out of range of our position. I don’t want the ship to worry any of them.”

  “Very well, Commander.”

  Miki continued. “As the diplomatic officer in charge of our relationship between the humans on Dawn and yourselves, we thank you for allowing us to visit with you in the stalks,” she said. “We have been curious as to how you live and wanted to see if there was anything further we could do for you. The prairies are now coming back to life with bison, deer, antelope and other smaller creatures, and it is our belief that your home will soon be back to what it might have been before the alien invasion.

  Our colonists on Dawn are well on the way to completing the construction of your defensive fleets and cooperation between your forces and ours has been superb.

  Commander Kelso and I have been working to make our mutual relationship sound and something that will remain well into the future. We have also thought there might be some other things we have that you could use. If that is true, we are here to discuss them. In the end, these things could become part of our trade and economic systems.”

  The Umon elders started looking at each other and talked among themselves.

  “Look at their colors,” Miki whispered again. “They alternate between those with necklaced spots and those without. All are grey, which I think means nothing more than great age. They may not have a leader as we know the term, but rather the necklace feature may define male from female.”

  The same necklaced Umon who had led us to the gathering place finally spoke. “We have discussed your proposal and consider it worth examination. Do you have anything in mind?”

  “Yes,” Miki said. “We have a device that can transform various minerals and proteins into anything you might want. It is a food synthesizer, primarily. Of course, it does not make things magically. It merely gathers the necessary atoms and molecules to produce whatever is wanted. This requires it to be re-loaded with substances that contain those molecules periodically.

  The beauty of this machine is that it would allow you to go anywhere on the satellite without worrying about where your food might come from. We note that your primary source of sustenance is the bamboo and its algae. We have scanned the algae and have determined it is related to the very first forms of life that developed on our own planet. We call it ‘blue green algae.’

  Blue green algae are edible and can be consumed as a food source by humans. Some forms of it can produce toxins that can kill, and unfortunately we have not yet determined which forms will do so. In order to do that, we would have to examine them closely and it has not yet been done. That is why we don’t use it. Nevertheless, algae protein packs a punch in terms of its amino acid profile. It contains all nine essential amino acids, which means it can be seen as a complete source of protein. We presume that your people either have not encountered the toxic type or are immune to it.

  These machines could be built into your fighter aircraft and provide food for your pilots for very long missions. And, of course, you could put them here and use them to prepare any type of food you might want. All that is required is the molecular structure of your chosen food and that can be determined by activating the scanner. It will determine the exact make up of whatever you want it to make and then program it into its memory. It is really quite handy.”

  “So,” the elder said. “You humans eat a variety of foods?�
�

  “Yes, we are quite creative. And, I suspect at one time so were you. It has been said that after the aliens arrived and destroyed animal life on the prairies, your people were forced to eat only what was available in the stalks. That suggests to me that you eat the algae now because all of the prairie foods were killed off. Soon, that will not be the case and I suspect some of you will want to return to the old ways.”

  The necklaced Umon started rocking back and forth, not unlike the typical movement of a retarded or brain damaged child. After a moment of doing this, it asked: “And, what would you require in exchange for these machines?”

  “We would like you to gather and supply enough of your algae to operate our large colonial ship for many years as we continue on our journey, and then send a regular supply to Dawn sufficient to supply the needs of their synthesizers thereafter. We have made rough calculations and have determined that your stalks can produce enough algae for both your own needs and those of the planet for many hundreds of years. Those calculations include predictable population expansions on both bodies. There is no risk that your supply would run out or be taken over by the humans. And, even if you were to stop shipping it to Dawn, they would be able to use other sources of minerals and proteins for their base.

  If such a point were ever to occur, you could also cut down on the shipments and allow the humans to grow their own bamboo. A new agreement suitable to the situation would then have to be negotiated.

  Humans do not rely solely on their synthesizers. They grow food, such as a wide variety of grains. They could also teach you how to grow those food grains. I see this as a situation that would benefit you both and bond you closer as time goes by. That would be one way to guarantee peace and prosperity for all.”

  The Umon seemed uncertain. Recognizing this, Miki suggested that they talk about it among themselves and include everyone not in attendance today. In the meantime, she asked permission for us to travel around Umon and look for restful places to relax. This required her to explain the concept of vacation and overwork, which she did admirably.

  Chapter 33

  With the assistance of the AI computer, we managed to find our way back to the fighter. It was unharmed, though had clearly felt the weight of many thousands of tiny circular feet, no doubt left by Umon young. And that was interesting in itself. We had not observed feet on either the young or old Umon, but that was no doubt because we could not see underneath them and were not about to ask.

  We did not worry about it. The computer did a complete scan of the ship to make sure nothing had been damaged. It found everything in working order, so we took off to the south hoping to find a suitable place to camp. Few of our people had ventured down there, so it would be a new experience for all to see. I instructed the computer to record our trip for the record.

  After several hours of cruising back and forth, we leisurely worked our way to the southern hemisphere. We found several mountain ranges, none of which stood very tall, and a peaceful setting near a meadow and stream. There were no Umon to be seen and no bamboo habitat, so we gathered they did not often come this way. Perhaps they couldn’t? Were they so dependent upon the stalks and algae that they could not go far from home? That was a very interesting thought and we talked about it for some time. If so, it would make a large difference with regard to the synthesizers. They needed them badly. So why were they playing coy?

  I landed the ship and we crawled out one after the other down the automatic stairway. I was tired from the flight, the long hike into the bamboo, and for a moment thought of returning to Kepler Dawn rather than setting up camp. That thought lasted less than five seconds when Miki came to me, put her arm around my waist and whispered, “Is this a beautiful place, or what?”

  Nature had provided a bounty of crisp colors here, tall red and blue mountain wild flowers and sharp contrasts with the red cliffs, all competing with the trees to the point where we could hardly drag ourselves away. My eyes hurt from the beauty of it all.

  An ancient glacier could be seen in the distance beyond the trees and was probably the cause of the creek’s silver grey waters. The creek itself emptied into a bay a few miles from our intended camp.

  I thought it more likely we could catch fish in the ocean waters than in the creek, but when we walked down to the glacier water we could see the splashing of huge fish as they fought their way up the fast moving stream. My first thought was that they must be a type of salmon, but they were white and at least ten to fifteen feet in length. Miki immediately recognized them as a species of Sturgeon, common to North America and Siberia on Earth. It was another case of convergent evolution light years apart.

  The red dwarf star had started to go down, its sunset layered with rusty clouds and red beams of light piercing through the breaks. It reminded me of the earliest ‘rising sun’ flag of the Japanese that was so meaningful in their culture. I mentioned it to Miki and she nodded, all while absorbing the picture into her psyche.

  Our campsite was perfectly set to display the creek’s eroded canyon lines. They were composed of sedimentary rocks of various colors, some light, some dark and some tilted up at odd angles. It confirmed our belief that the planet must have its own tectonic structure.

  When we could barely see, I returned to the fighter and pulled out the camping package. It contained an automatic self-inflating shelter, blankets, sleeping bags and all the food we would possibly need for the next few days.

  “Should we break out the fishing poles?” Miki asked.

  “No, I don’t think so. We could get them out and prepare to use them tomorrow, if we have time. Right now it looks like it will be completely dark in a few minutes. With those trees blocking what little light we get from this red star, I suspect we will soon be unable to see our hands in front of our face.”

  I was right. By the time we crawled into our shelter, the night was as black as Miki’s hair. I flicked on one of the many LED lights built into the shelter’s walls and we made our bed as comfy as we could.

  “We should grab a snack and find something better to do,” Miki said with a smile on her face. “I’m not really hungry. Although I think I would like some of the wine and cheese the captain provided. We can catch a fish or two tomorrow, make breakfast and then take a hike down to the bay. I’m guessing we will find some smaller fish down there.”

  By the time we’d finished our snack and crawled under our covers, I was as ready as I had ever been. Miki had become an expert ministering to my needs and I returned the favor.

  As we lay afterward, breathless and wrapped in each other’s arms, Miki started to say something. I looked at her, wondering what she had been about to say. She just shook her head.

  “What?”

  “Nothing. I’ll tell you later. I don’t want it to dominate our vacation.”

  “What do you mean?”

  She looked at me again. “Are you losing your hearing? Perhaps you should check with the medical staff when we get back.”

  “Sheesh. Now you are starting to sound like Jean-Luk.”

  “Jean-Luk? Who is that?”

  I laughed. “I’ll tell you tomorrow. I don’t want it to dominate our vacation.”

  ∆ ∆ ∆

  It was still dark when we woke up. A loud splashing sound could be heard coming from the area of the river. I got up and peeked out. I could see nothing.

  “Something’s definitely splashing at the river. Maybe fish are jumping.”

  “What time is it?”

  “I don’t know. I’ve been on military time since we got here and it does not relate to the shorter days on Dawn.”

  “Let’s get some flashlights and go down to the river. That’s a lot of noise.”

  “Okay.” I rummaged around in our supply box and came up with two portable lights.”

  After pulling on some clothes, we climbed out of the shelter and looked around. The sound was definitely coming from the river. “Let’s go,” I said.

  “Right behind you,
big guy.”

  As we approached the river, I could see the flash of fish and their shiny scales. Some of the fish were jumping several feet above the water.

  “Good grief, look at those fish. They’re jumping their full length out of the water. What kind of fish can do that?”

  “Big ones, or scared ones.”

  “Why would they be scared?”

  “I don’t know.”

  As we watched, the sky changed to a salmon pink. Within minutes we could see the river clearly. Not only could we see the fish jumping, we could see their monstrous looking teeth. There was no way I was going to get into that creek with such fish in it.

  “Hey,” Miki said. “They are definitely related to Sturgeon, the biggest fish in North America. “

  “Should we try to catch one?”

  “It wouldn’t be difficult,” she said. “But we could not eat it all and I don’t want to be called a wastrel.”

  “Don’t they have lots of eggs? Maybe we could catch one and steal its eggs. They are supposed to be very good. Caviar, I think they are called.”

  “We’d have to cut it open and that would probably kill it.”

  “Damn. I guess we’ll just have to watch and eat snack food.”

  “No, I’ve got bacon and eggs. We can eat and watch at the same time.”

  I took a lot of pictures while Miki played housewife, cooking over a small fire. While we were eating I stored all of the photos for upload to the computer. After that we wandered off to the North, the direction I had attributed to the mountains, to see what we could see. As it turned out, there was nothing we could make out except the huge trees. A woodpecker-like bird was thumping on a log somewhere off in the distance and stare as I might, I could not pick it out of the mass of leaves and limbs. There were just too many trees, thick with pine cones and weird looking spikey leaves.