Harvest End

by Max Dane

  Speaking slowly, he began again, “Try to have an open mind. The harvesters are taking our worlds’ resources home for use. It was Finn who helped me to realize that the one place in the whole galaxy that is safe from them, is their home. It makes perfect sense to believe that the makers of the harvesters would not allow them to harvest their own world. So, I believe our best chance of learning how to shut them down, is to follow them home as well.”

  Nath was shaking his head, “It’s not possible, the cloud moves very slowly. It may gather speed as it goes, but for now, we would still be waiting and following while our grandchildren got married and had children of their own. This is not an option.”

  Julian nodded, “I agree that we cannot follow any single cloud. Instead we will do as Captain Holt suggests and follow them all.”

  “What?” said Micha turning to look at Finn, who held his hands up and shrugged.

  Alex looked from Julian to Finn, “I’m sorry, I don’t quite follow.”

  Finn remembered his conversation with Julian and began to understand. “I think I know where you’re going with this, Julian.” Looking around the table he said, “You want to go to each contaminated system and calculate a vector indicating the path of the cloud as it leaves that star system. Since each of the star systems are quite far apart, we should be able to place the paths into a model of the galaxy and triangulate a resulting point for the aliens’ home.”

  Julian leaned back, crossing his arms and beaming at them. “That’s what we need to do, and the sooner the better.” He picked up his datatab and said, “Watch this; Computer, display image file ‘J22’.”

  Above the table a hologram of the galaxy appeared and slowly rotated. A single star was highlighted with a yellow arrow pointing up and inward. In tiny letters, the word ‘Madras’ appeared above it.

  “As you can see, I’ve already inserted the path of the cloud, here at Madras, into the three dimensional map of the galaxy. With a few more, we should be able to triangulate the position of the alien home world.”

  “If you do find it,” said Alex, “It seems unlikely there will be a convenient jump nearby; how do you propose we get there?”

  Julian was unperturbed, “I don’t know.”

  “If we can’t reach them” said Finn, “how will you communicate with them?”

  “I don’t know.”

  Still looking frustrated, Nath said, “Then how will knowing their home system help us stop these ‘harvesters’?”

  “I’m sorry, Dr. Nath, Alex but I don’t have the answer. I only know that we have collected as much information as we’re going to find here. We have a hypothesis that fits what they appear to be, and how they will behave. Unless we agree to sit and wait while our fearful leaders back home burn whole star systems, we must continue on. I am the leader of this investigation, and I say that our next best clue lies in determining where the harvesters are going. Captain Holt, I request that we set course to New Dublin, to be followed by every colony along Orion’s Arm.”

  The room became silent, as they all turned to Finn. He realized this was not the course he’d imagined for this mission. He also knew the mission had already become like none other.

  He paused and chose his words carefully, “I admit this is not the outcome I was expecting. I thought that we would come here to study the scourge, identify a weakness in their design, and use it to wipe them out. It seems that option may not exist or is beyond our technology at this time.” He looked to Micha, and then to Alex, “I agree with Julian that waiting for the people back home to act is tantamount to giving up. I have lost too much to these damn ‘harvesters’ to simply give up. I say we go to New Dublin as Julian proposes and bring an end to this harvest.”

  Alex grinned, and Micha smiled. Nath sat heavily back into his chair, obviously unsatisfied with the outcome, but having no alternative to voice.

  Julian stood up, “Thank you, Captain. I will make preparations to leave, immediately.”

  Finn stood up and turned to leave, “Commander, please inform the crew that we are leaving.”

  “Ah, Captain, may I ask a question?” It was Nath, rising from the table.

  Micha held her breath.

  Finn stopped and turned around at the door. Short and curt he said only, “You may.”

  “The prototype for the EM transmitter, the one that Julian asked me to design, is it installed yet?”

  “Not yet, I believe it is in engineering undergoing analysis. Once they have approved the design, they will install it.” Finn didn’t wait for a response but turned again to leave.

  “But, Captain Holt, I just wanted to say that if they should have any questions, I would be most happy to assist with- ”

  Turning sharply, Finn said, “Thank you, Doctor Nath, that will be all.”

  He left quickly, walking briskly down the corridor.

  Scowling, Nath looked at Julian, “Your captain still does not like me.”

  Julian grasped the man’s shoulder, “Give him time, Dr. Nath; he will come around. Your design for the EM mask is excellent. By transmitting the EM signature for hydrogen, you are adding a second layer of protection for the crew. Believe me, when it’s in operation he will be appreciative.”

  Nath began walking to the door. “Yes, he will be most appreciative.”

  As Finn approached the corridor to the bridge, he looked over his shoulder and said, “Alex, Micha, come with me.” Together, he led them to a sensor bay, which looked to be deserted. In a low voice he said, “Alex, get with engineering and review the good doctor’s design. I want a full report from you, before it gets installed. Micha, I told engineering that they needed your approval before installation. Stall them until Alex has had a chance to look it over. I may not like him, but I don’t want to overly abuse the man, if he’s really here to help. And I wouldn’t mind having another protection from the scour-, I mean the harvesters.” Alex nodded and headed off to engineering. Micha stayed with Finn on the way to the bridge.

  When they walked in, she said, “I have good news everyone, we’re leaving.” Showing clear signs of relief from every station, the bridge crew very nearly cheered when she said it.

  “Setting course for the jump point, Commander,” said Eton without any hesitation.

  “Very good, Mr. Eton. Mr. Keating, as soon as you have a heading, please get us out of this cloud and back to New Dublin.”

  “Yes, Commander.”

  “Lieutenant Banton, please announce that we are on our way to the jump point.”

  “Yes, Commander.”

  Finn stepped around Micha and sat down in the command chair. It was good to be leaving. Sitting down, he realized he was smiling along with everyone else.

  “Course laid in, Commander, we’re on our way to the jump.” Keating could barely wait to get out of the horrible, blue cloud that covered all the ship’s screens. For several days now, it had been like waiting in a giant ant bed. Everything he touched, dubious; everything he wore, itchy. Finally the cloud fell away behind them, returning the view screens on the bridge to a healthy clarity.

  Watching the bluish cover dissipate around them, Finn said, “I’ve missed the stars this past week. I didn’t realize how much until now.”

  Micha nodded and sat back down. She watched her monitor as the Athena pulled gracefully away from the Madras colony, out of the harvester cloud, and sped off to the jump point back to New Dublin. In the background she could hear Lieutenant Banton over the ship’s comm, “Attention, crew of the Athena Rising, we are preparing to leave the Cetus system. Prepare to jump in twenty-seven minutes.”

  Chapter 10

  Just as there is no loss of basic energy in the universe, so no thought or action is without its effects, present or ultimate, seen or unseen, felt or unfelt.

  - Norman Cousins

  It was the day after they’d arrived in the Sabik system; New Dublin was not exactly opposite their position relative to the system star, but far enough away that they were in no dan
ger of crossing the harvester cloud. Julian assured them that he could capture the direction of the cloud all the way from here and asked that they only pause, holding position while he worked. Finn hadn’t seen Julian since they arrived; he was probably working feverishly in the dark recesses of the ship’s laboratory.

  And so they waited.

  Finn didn’t mind all that much, because it gave the engineers time to install Dr. Nath’s EM transmitters. They determined that it would take several of them, installed in precise locations around the exterior of the ship, to adequately blanket the entire vessel. Outside the harvester cloud, as they were, it was a simple matter to exit the ship and make necessary installations. Even now, engineers flitted and darted about the Athena with tiny thrusters, welding and wiring the devices into place.

  Prior to giving his approval to Commander Alwin, Alex had reviewed the device. He reported that some of the components on Nath’s list weren’t being used at all, and the ones that were implemented were basic enough to understand. His conclusion was positive; it was simple enough to replicate and benign enough to use.

  “Commander,” said Finn, “Have you seen Julian?”

  Micha closed her console, “No, and I’m ready to start moving again. I’d call him, but he doesn’t want to be interrupted. He really complains.”

  Smiling, Finn said, “Well, I’ll wait until the EM transmitters are installed and then ask for an update, politely.”

  “Speaking of the transmitters,” said Micha, “I suppose I could take a space walk and check on their status.” She was grinning, knowing full well that Finn couldn’t resist a chance to walk outside the ship. He had loved it ever since his first trip into space as a cadet. She was one of the few who knew it, too.

  “Yes, that does sound like a good idea,” he said jumping up. “Maybe I’ll just take a quick walk with you. Mr. Keating, you have the bridge.”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  But then, just as they were leaving the bridge, the doors opened to reveal Julian walking in, wrinkled clothes, unshaven, and smiling broadly.

  “Well there he is,” said Micha, “emerging from his dank and musty laboratory, the mad scientist himself, finally revealed.”

  “Were you going somewhere?” asked Julian, walking up to them.

  Finn, feeling very disappointed, stopped in his tracks, “No, I suppose not. What do you have for us today, Julian?” He glanced at Micha and walked stubbornly back to the command chair.

  “I’m done; have a look.” Julian walked to the science station and pulled up his model of the galaxy. Displayed on the main screen, Finn could see the first arrow indicating the path of the cloud at Madras, and now a second one showing the path of the cloud at New Dublin.

  “From these two pointers, I can rule out about seventy percent of the galaxy.” He made another adjustment and most of the stars in the model dimmed.

  “Our target is somewhere in the remaining portion.”

  “Excellent, well done, Julian.” Micha walked over and stood next to him while he rotated the model, studying it from different directions. Finn noticed that she was standing awfully close.

  “Yes, well I was just going down to engineering,” said Finn, “to find out how close they are, to wrapping up the installation of the EM transmitters.” With a little luck he might still be able to take a quick walk outside after all. He got up and headed out for the second time. “Commander, you have the bridge.” Micha watched as he got up to leave, knowing he was still trying to get outside.

  Just then Alex came through the door, “Actually, Captain, I just left engineering, and they say they’re ready to test them now. That’s why I’m here; they finished earlier than expected. Apparently they underestimated the strength of the transmitters and didn’t need as many as they anticipated.” Finn glanced at Micha, who was struggling not to laugh. He smiled and turned around, returning once again to his captain’s chair.

  “Very well, then please proceed.”

  Alex joined Julian at the science station, while Micha took her station at Finn’s side. “Better luck next time,” she whispered. He looked at her briefly, and with a quick grimace, said to Julian. “Okay Doctor, fire them up, let’s see what they can do.”

  Julian’s hands flew across the controls as he added power to their subroutine, bringing them online one at a time. “Captain, the EM emitters are powered up and broadcasting the hydrogen, EM mask. If any of the harvesters get past the barrier field, this should trick them into believing we’re a big cloud of the most abundant element in the galaxy.”

  “And just like the shield, it will be running all the time; is that right?” asked Micha.

  “Yes, that’s correct, except when we pass through the jumps. I’m adding its start-up routine to our jump protocol just as we did with the barrier. It should power up the moment we return to normal space.”

  “With the transmitters in place, and the cloud-path mapped, I should think it’s time for us to depart,” said Finn. “Mr. Keating, please take us the rest of the way to the next jump point.”

  “Yes, Captain,” said Keating, “Course laid in; we should reach the jump to New Rome in about three hours.”

  Alex said to Julian, “I was hoping we could talk a bit about the harvesters, and their home.”

  “Sure, Alex, come with me. I need to go to my quarters and get some fresh clothes.” After he shut down the science station, he walked over to Micha, “Commander, if you have time later, I was hoping we could review the jump protocols together.” Smiling at him, she nodded and said, “Yes, Doctor, that sounds like a good idea.”

  Leading the way, Julian left with Alex.

  On the way to Julian’s quarters, Alex said, “The transmitters were a good idea, Julian. Dr. Nath’s design was efficient and easy to replicate. I was wondering if he has returned the components he didn’t use?”

  “I don’t know; I didn’t really think about it. I need to get with him later anyway, to talk about the possibility of blanketing a planet with his EM transmission. I feel like the power required will prohibit the possibility, but it’s worth discussing. Also, I want him to reconfigure the lab modules and prepare for a round of astro-geography. We’ll need a lot of number crunching to analyze the data we’re getting.”

  They arrived and entered Julian’s cabin where he went right to the kitchen, looking for something to eat. “What did you want to talk about, Alex?”

  Alex sat down on the couch and said, “I’m sorry, Julian, but I’m afraid I haven’t made any progress trying to find clues in the harvesters we’ve scanned. I’ve been studying the samples we took at Madras. As you know, I was looking for anything in their physical make-up that might yield information about their makers or their home world. Instead, what I found was that they replicate themselves from the materials on-hand; so the harvesters from Madras appear to have been manufactured from materials at Madras. It might be different if I had an original harvester to examine, but… ”

  Julian grimaced, “But there are billions of them, and no way of sorting through them. Yes, I understand; that’s disappointing.”

  Julian sat down in a chair opposite Alex, “I was hoping your work would yield some clue that might help me know what to do, after we’ve identified their home world.”

  “So was I,” said Alex, “I’ll keep trying, but I’m starting to doubt we can find anything useful this way, after all.”

  Alex stood up and started towards the door, “I better get back to the bridge. Perhaps we’ll find something unique about their star system.”

  “I agree; that’s all we can do for now, thank you, Alex.”

  The door whirred open and shut, leaving Julian alone with his nutrition bar. Practically inhaling it, he stored the container and ran to the shower. If he hurried there would still be time to see Micha before the jump.

  After leaving New Dublin behind, the Athena emerged from the next jump to arrive in the Rigel star system, home to the colony of New Rome. Finn brought the ship to a st
op, safely away from the colony, and the harvester cloud that still engulfed it. “Lieutenant, please get me Julian on the comm.”

  “Yes, Captain, I’m here.” Julian was standing by, in the recently re-configured laboratory, in the starboard section of the ship. It was set up as an observatory now, with some stations ready to study the cloud paths, and others standing by to begin analysis of the system, he still hoped to find.

  “Julian, we’re holding position while you take your readings of the cloud.”

  “Thank you, Captain. I’ll let you know when we’re finished.”

  “Very good, Doctor.”

  Finn turned to the navigator and said, “Mr. Eaton, on review of the last jump, does the log indicate that the barrier field, and the EM mask both activated when we came through?”

  Eaton quickly pulled up the ship’s log and found the record of their jump from New Dublin. “Yes, Captain, confirmed. The updated jump protocol worked as intended. Both safety measures were activated and operating, immediately following the jump here.”

  “Very good, maybe I owe our friend, Dr. Nath, an apology.”

  “Mr. Eton, please show us a map of Orion’s Arm; I want to see where we are and what’s ahead of us.”

  A moment later, the main screen displayed a top down view of the path called ‘Orion’s Arm’. Beginning with New Dublin, the next system was Rigel where a flashing green dot highlighted their current position. Following Rigel, the next system along the way was the Bunda star system, followed by Deneb. Together, these systems and their colonies had been named after the trailblazer, Mekas Orion. Traders dubbed the path, ‘Orion’s Arm, and it had been called that ever since.