Colors
~2 months after landing on Terra Alpha
~~~~~~~~
“Faster, faster!” It was impossible to see the large beast that chased them, but the sounds of its crashing through the underbrush were unmistakable. They had stumbled upon its lair by accident as they hunted for their meal, their hunger and lack of familiarity with this new area resulting in tragic loss.
Panting hard, he bunched his legs preparing to jump high enough to see over the brush to find refuge. It was a gamble, but one he had to take to save the others. Yes! There were boulders just ahead. Rocks large enough to shelter in and hopefully lay low until the beast became weary of waiting for them. He whistled encouragingly to the two who followed, hoping they would continue to follow him and not return to find their fallen mother. She hadn’t had a hope. She had stumbled straight into the mouth of the beast and was gone before she knew what had happened. He would grieve later. “Run, run!”
The rocks were almost in front of them. The smallest one stumbled but scrambled to her feet just as sharp teeth reached her.
“No!!” He bounded back and landed just between the beast and his youngest. The youngster leapt away to join her brother amongst the rocks’ sheltering shadows. He felt the sharp teeth grab him and shake. He heard the cries of his children and had time to call out just once more.
“You are loved!”
~~~~~~~~
Sandra led the way back to her small quonset hut, the two behind her trailing silently. She was at a loss as to what would happen next, personally and for the community at large. Behind them, she could hear voices being raised in the cavern they had just left, and many of the deeper ones sounded angry.
The winding path became harder to see as the sunlight dimmed into dusk. The photosensors on the outside lights still glitched on occasion and failed to illuminate as they ought at sunset. Tonight appeared to be one of those nights, and the tech in charge was undoubtedly still inside the meeting. Sandra stumbled once or twice but was too deep in thought to even pay much attention to the helpful arm lent by the person behind her.
She knew they were right, she and the other women, but they were asking for a great deal from their fellow Alphans. For a fundamental change in how most relationships had been handled for years. Instead of monogamy, or at least serial monogamy, they were basically proposing a form of polyandry.
The problem was that men outnumbered the young women by a significant margin here on Terra Alpha. Due to the general prevalence of men in the space program to begin with, and then the tendency for the more successful scientists of the type stationed on Alpha to be in their later thirties or forties, or older, Alphan women under the age of thirty were a distinct minority. And women of safe reproductive age, say under forty given their presently limited medical resources, still only accounted for seventy or so out of the surviving population of 253. After only two months on Terra Alpha, already the pressing urge to start families was responsible for flares of temper and frustration as couples paired off and many men were left out. And to the great alarm of the Alphans, there had even been one assault. There were simply not enough young women to go around.
Sandra had been the spokesperson at the meeting they had just left, but it had been Tanya who had spoken among the women and had taken the council of the CMO, Dr Darrel Wandell. Tanya had proposed a flexible family structure centered around a mother and her children. The fathers could live with the family or not, as was best in each situation, but were nonetheless expected to contribute to the children’s support and upbringing. Preferred pairings were to be expected, but no one who desired the opportunity to contribute to the next generation was to be left out. Everyone could and was expected to contribute in some fashion. That was the message the women gave the community as a whole.
The Alphans had become used to a very communal life in their ten months isolated on the moon, and there would be no significant changes to that lifestyle in the foreseeable future. Everyone had skills that were important and needed to be preserved. Even the extremely technical specialists from the nuclear facilities and the vacuum chemistry labs would be vital in setting up a new community at the highest technical level feasible. Each Alphan knew how to learn new things, and that was the greatest knowledge of all. No one wanted to return to the pre-industrial age, much less the stone age.
Sandra paused as she reached the door of her quarters. She and Peter had shared them for the past two months while Alan had bunked in the temporary barracks set up for men, or in one of the Eagles, the latter of which Sandra had intimate knowledge.
She was not fond of confrontations. In fact, she had always gone out of her way to avoid them. Tonight she feared she had no choice. She opened the door to the small domicile and walked to the sofa table scavenged from Alpha and turned on the light. The bare, white concave walls reflected the dim light onto three solemn faces. On Earth, Sandra would never have thought to carry on two affairs at once, but what on runaway Alpha could ever have been contrived as normal? Tanya’s proposal might just, selfishly she agreed, solve her dilemma.
The tall, lean, dark haired man wore a closed expression as he looked at Sandra, doing his best to ignore the blond man standing in the shadows to his left. It was obvious that Peter Rockwell felt he had the prior claim and was not pleased with the change in the status quo. He made to step toward Sandra, but paused at the involuntary movement from the shadows. Sandra watched the impasse and then slowly sank down to sit on the sofa.
“Peter, I do not want…” she could not continue. She really didn’t know what she could say that would ease the situation. “Peter, sit. Please.”
Sandra watched as Peter’s expression became more and more stony. She could see his disbelief and hurt turn to anger. “Sandra, if you think I’ll…” he cast a look toward the shadows. “Dammit, Sandra!” He spun about and stormed out the door. She stood to follow.
“Let him go.”
Sandra looked back over to Alan who was slowly walking across the room to the computer table and then pulled out the chair in front of it. Seated, he turned on the work lamp to its brightest, contrary to the usual habit of after-dark power conservation. She quirked an eyebrow at the waste of precious solar energy.
Carefully making sure he was seated in sight of the still open door, he spoke casually without turning around. “If I were in Peter’s shoes, I’d be watching to see if the lights went out.” Alan booted up the computer and called up a CAD program. “Come see, Sahn. We need to work on our home.”
Sandra smiled slightly and walked over to stand behind Alan and watch his work, resting her hands lightly on his shoulders. Trust a pilot to be practical, the chief pilot moreso. She watched silently as Alan scribed a large home with multiple rooms.
“We need to decide where, of course, but that will depend on how we want to live.”
“Oh?”
“Uh huh, could be a large house with rooms for us, kids, and, say an Eagle garage…”
“Alan.” Sandra laughed and gently squeezed his shoulders. He chuckled as he picked up her left hand and kissed its back as he continued to work.
“Or maybe a suite of interconnecting caves. That would have the advantage of security but less custom design…”
Sandra watched as Alan continued to spin out possibilities and tell her of all the beautiful places he had seen as he had flown reconnaissance over this section of the continent. The hour passed swiftly and Sandra was surprised when Alan suddenly saved all his work but left the machine on. He stood and pulled Sandra into his arms.
“We’ll make this work. See what Peter thinks.” He kissed her gently and then stepped away, closing the door behind him. Sandra watched through the window as he headed away from the main compound until he was lost in the darkness. The door opened again, and she smiled to see Peter’s look of relief.
~~~~~~~~
The small ones huddled together for warmth and reassurance. They had seen the deaths of both mother and father in such a brief span of time… it still seemed unbelievable. The elder muttered reassurance to the younger that neither believed. The beast was still out there, just beyond the rocks. They could see the red, angry flickers moving about the grasses as they cowered small and scared. Just like their mother had taught them, they kept their fear deeply buried and struggled to think thoughts of green and purple and blue.
The beast roared and the children almost cried out in their fear. But the beast wasn’t roaring at them, his red anger was becoming the yellow of fear and suddenly the beast turned and ran away. What could frighten a beast?
The world became silent. The children froze in terror. Then, a deep rhythmic thumping came closer and closer. The larger of the two small orphans pressed his sister deep into the grasses and covered her body with his, fearfully watching the side of the boulder from where the noise came. Suddenly, a bright, coruscating light briefly dazzled his sight, brilliant in its yellows and oranges and purples. Then it was gone.
~~~~~~~~
Alan had quickly walked away from the near vicinity of Sandra’s hut and was now crossing an open field covered with the short, thick grasses found here. They were an interesting mix of purples and blue-greens that seemed mottled in the dim ivory light cast by the moon passing overhead this night. Alan knew he would always miss the white light reflected by their lost moon, but he refused to become maudlin. He continued his brisk walk toward the open field about a kilometer away. He had decided to keep three of the Eagles nearby, prepped and ready for use on short notice. The remaining fleet was scattered in the next few fields a few klicks over the small rise along with weather proof crates of Alphan supplies not yet parceled out.
Alan broke out in a jog to cool off his blood. He had wanted to take Sandra then and there, but that would not have been…strategic. He needed Peter as an ally if this was going to work. Their new family needed to present a united front, especially after Sandra’s child was born. He wondered if it was his.
The fresh air tasted so very good. Even the brisk breeze that seemed to kick up at this time of day felt perfectly wonderful. His light sweat evaporated quickly and he laughed at the sheer pleasure of being alive. Peter was a solid bloke and would come around given time and a bit of space. Now that Alan had the commitment he wanted, he could afford to be magnanimous and give Peter that time.
He headed to Eagle 1 and used his commlock to open the door. He bounded aboard barely hearing the small background noises of this new planet over his panting breaths. He closed the door and headed toward the back to bunk down. One of the privileges of being chief pilot was a private place to sleep away from the snoring masses. He lit a small light and opened the storage cubby to retrieve a pillow and blanket.
“Carter, turn off the light.”
Alan stood so quickly he clunked his head against the upper control panel.
“Dammit, John, you’ll frighten a guy to death doing that.” Alan rubbed his sore spot and bent over to close the hatch. He tucked the pillow and blanket under his arm and entered the small sleeping room at the rear of the Eagle. John had already claimed the lower bunk so Alan tossed his pillow into the upper and got ready to hop up the short distance.
“Light, Alan.”
“Oh, right.” Alan pulled off his commlock and aimed it in the proper direction to turn off the light and then engaged the door seals, the latter an old habit he wasn’t about to start breaking now. This planet seemed uncommonly peaceful─ but one never knew. He was more than a little surprised to find the Commander out here, but the man was known for his odd silences and moody behavior, and retreating out here for a bit of privacy was certainly in character. He was a strange, intense man that few were comfortable with. Alan happened to be among those few. More or less.
Alan pulled his boots off and dropped them to the floor. He shook out his blanket and folded his meager pillow in half to try to get more height and comfort from its thinness. Taking a final deep breath of air that still smelled of their wonderful new home, he stretched out and closed his eyes.
“How’s Peter taking it?”
Alan opened his eyes and looked at the ceiling not so far above him. “Not well. But he’ll come around.”
Alan smiled as he heard John’s snort of disbelief.
“I’m not going anywhere and Sandra’s made it clear she and the other women will have their say.”
Alan remained silent for a while until his curiosity got the best of him.
“What does Paul have to say about all this?”
“I don’t know. I was warned by Darrel that something was up and to be at that meeting, but nothing else. I think he and Tanya put together this scheme then set Sandra up for the presentation.”
Alan nodded his head slowly. That would make sense. The CMO, Dr. Darrel Wandell, would support the genetic diversity this would bring to their oh-so-small group. And Tanya had not been as subtle as she perhaps thought in her interest in both Paul and the Commander. Perhaps that explained why John had put up so little fuss.
“It just formalizes what’s already happening, Alan. And hopefully it’ll cut down on a lot of the maneuvering and posturing.’” John thumped the bottom of the bunk over him. “Your pilots are the worst.”
Alan shrugged. That shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone. Reconnaissance and Security usually had the highest number of young men.
“Tanya seems to think I need a keeper.” John’s voice held a dry note of amusement. “And she’s nominated herself.”
Alan yawned and closed his eyes, the evening’s events catching up with him. “She’ll have her hands full.” He didn’t stay awake long enough to hear the reply.
~~~~~~~~
“Hungry. So hungry!”
The elder shushed the younger and licked her dense coat comfortingly. He was hungry, too. But they would have to stay here the remainder of this long night. The beast hunted in the dark and this was the time of greatest danger. If they could but survive the night they could make their way back to the forest in the morning. There they could find food and water and kin.
~~~~~~~~
Sandra woke up without opening her eyes, disoriented by the bright light shining through her eyelids. Had Peter forgotten to turn off the lights again? She rolled over and curled into the warmth of her fiancée and tried to return to sleep. She was normally an early riser, but they all had been working so very hard of late that she was perpetually tired. Something nagged at her tired memory. Oh, yes. The light wasn’t from a lamp but from this system’s primary. And Alpha was two months gone.
Sandra felt a twinge of grief for their lost moonbase and its tangible connection with Earth, but─ Sandra opened her eyes to the bright sunlight streaming in the high window and the scents in the fresh air. She smiled. She must have slept later than she ought. She felt a moment of queasiness, but that was quickly forgotten in her excitement to greet the day. She rolled over and kissed the still sleeping man next to her. They had been up late discussing the changes necessary to survive on their new home, and that combined with hard work and their still meager diet had left poor Peter simply worn out. And last night’s exertions hadn’t helped, she chuckled. Sandra smiled as she ran a light hand down his chest and belly.
She was so grateful he had been visiting Alpha at Breakaway. He and Kevin Taylor had been the pilots on Terran shuttle duty when Commander Koenig had been sent up to take command of Alpha, and both pilots had then gotten caught up in the frantic events of that time. He had been her steadfast support through all those terrifying times on wayward Alpha. He had even encouraged her to respond to Alan’s call up of all available terrestrial pilots to help man their dwindling Reconnaissance corps. She had surprised herself in mastering the complex Eagle controls and had turned out to be a fair pilot. Not bad for a woman with only a private small aircraft license to her credit.
Sandra’s thoughts drifted back to her family. Her mother would have been so very proud of her to learn she now had Eagle flight credentials. Elisabeth Benes had wanted to become an astronaut, but her small stature had prevented that. One of Sandra’s favorite memories was of showing her mother around Alpha just a few months before Breakaway. Her father had also wanted to come, but his heart condition had prevented it.
Peter stirred beneath her caresses. He had been appalled when he had reviewed Alan’s proposed living arrangements— for the three of them to live together in one dwelling, even a good-sized one. For her part, she found herself somewhat bemused to be the interest of two such different men. On Earth, well, on Earth she had been easily overlooked. She had been delighted when she and Peter had ‘clicked’ after a fortuitous meeting in Cologne, Germany and very, very happy when he had asked for marriage. That was to have taken place shortly after the New Year, just a few weeks after her tour finished in December of 1999. Alan was an unexpected complication.
They had been friends for years. Sandra smiled to herself. Anyone who would help smuggle needlework supplies up to Alpha was bound to become a friend. And perhaps there had been some small attraction there, but it was never acted upon. It was the events on Retha that had changed things, much to her surprise. With Koenig in a coma in Medical Center, and Sandra still cringed to recall how she was the cause of that, Alan and Tony Verdeschi had stayed on the planet hunting for her and the others. Peter had remained on Alpha to coordinate Eagle ops and help Paul. During her captivity and afterwards she had been so very scared, and Alan had been understanding and available.
She cared for Peter because they were so similar, and for Alan because they were not. She watched as Peter woke up and opened his eyes to meet hers.
“Do you really love him?”
She nodded.
~~~~~~~~
“Eat now?” The small one chirruped piteously. Her elder sibling purred an understanding note but would not commit himself.
As the sun rose, they had carefully explored all the vegetation around these strange rocks and had found nothing edible. All the leaves and grass smelled singed and hot. As if a fire had once been just here. They would have to do something and soon, but the safety of the woods was so very far away.
The elder groomed the younger to settle his unease. They would need to strike out soon to avoid hungry beasts. He just wished he could understand what had caused the brilliant flash that had chased the beast away in the night just over.
~~~~~~~~
“Hey, John, time to rise and shine. I think we overslept.” Alan in fact knew they had overslept. His commlock read 0930, local time, based on a 23 1/3 hour day. Those missing forty minutes were wrecking havoc with their timekeeping files. One of Sandra’s more immediate problems, he knew.
Alan rolled out of his bunk and dropped lightly to the floor. Stretching briefly and folding his blanket, he headed for the small lavatory. He passed John just waking up.
“Everyone back at the command center must have overslept too. Can’t see why else we wouldn’t have gotten a wake up call from someone otherwise.” Alan splashed water on his face and ran a razor over his stubbly whiskers. Soon finished with his morning ablutions, he stepped out to make way for John. The two astronauts didn’t even think twice of their tight quarters.
Alan took a moment to heat up one of the dwindling supply of pre-packaged meals for breakfast, and headed to the command module to check current computer read-outs. He supposed he could have checked them from the terminal in the main module, but he just felt more comfortable up front.
Munching his way systematically through the lackluster meal, he noted the funny irregularities picked up overnight by the routine exterior scans. Puzzled, he held the piece of hard tack between his teeth as he reached over to fine tune one monitor and at the same time open a comm line to rear of the Eagle.
“Hey, John, come up here, would you?” It came out muffled but understandable.
Holding his own breakfast, Koenig slid into the co-pilot’s seat and scanned the readouts.
“There, John, see that flicker that keeps happening in the grass right at the edge of the screen, almost below the Eagle. But,” and Alan flipped on the view of directly below the bird, “nothing shows up here. Like someone is pacing the very edge of the perimeter under the Eagle. Almost like sentry duty.”
“Has to be a small someone,” John said thoughtfully. “We haven’t seen many native animals yet. Just the insect analogs in the forests and those flying ‘birds’. Could be we’ve found the neighbors.” He swallowed the last few crumbs of the dry meal and finished the hot drink. He smiled over at Alan, some of his old explorer’s enthusiasm returning. “Let’s go check.”
“Yeah, maybe it’s the local version of a pork chop waiting to happen.”
Quickly notifying the new Alphan ‘command center’ of their observations and intentions, the two men picked up hand lasers and opened the Eagle’s door.
~~~~~~~~
The sun was bright. There was no use waiting any longer. He looked at the small one and nudged her up to her feet. He hoped she could make the long walk. The trees were over there, he knew, but not how far. Trees meant safety. Trees meant food and family.
“Come.”
He led the way as they crossed out of the safety and shelter of the rocks and into the exposed openness. They had to trust in their coats to blend into the grasses around them for camouflage. Except for the beats, not much would eat a grown adult of The People, but the young of their kind were considered a delicacy by many a high flyer.
The two children prepared for a long journey when suddenly there was a thumping behind them. They crouched. Slowly, so slowly, they turned around shivering in fear to see what new danger was upon them. They looked up, and up, only to have to close their dark eyes against the coruscating brilliance of the one in front on them. The elder sang a lament for his sister’s death to come.
~~~~~~~~
“Hey, John.” Alan gestured with his laser at the two small creatures cowering at his feet. They were silent but visibly trembling. Alan carefully took a step back and then sat down on his haunches.
The larger was about the size of a football, but purple and blue instead of proper black and white. The smaller was about half the size and a quarter of the mass and had more strands of red running through its… fur? Almost looked more like the thick, corded merino wool he had helped shear off some of the sheep kept as specials on his family’s station. And soft looking.
“So, those our mysterious sentries?” John spoke quietly as he bent down behind Alan.
“Must be. They’re small enough to stay hidden in the grass under the Eagle. And with those odd colors they’d blend right in with the grass hereabouts.”
“Well, I certainly think they’re too small to make much of a pork chop. Come on, Carter, let’s head back. We need to finish those plans on how to get those weather satellites in orbit. I don’t want to surprised by a blizzard.” He headed out across the field.
Alan stood and shuddered theatrically then followed John. “That’s why we planted ourselves here. Should stay nice and temperate year round if this planet follows the basic rules.”
“And if it doesn’t?”
“Then we breed up a whole lot of those little hairy critters back there and knit ourselves some sweaters.”
Koenig laughed and turned to see if he could still spot the little creatures. He could. “Alan, stand still.”
Alan did so, hand slowly moving toward his laser.
“Turn around, but watch your feet.”
Alan pivoted in place and looked down. The two small animals were almost touching his boots. They looked up at him, their dark eyes wide and, Alan would later swear, glowing with infatuation. With their delicate, pointed muzzles they vaguely reminded him of the hedgehogs he had seen in New Zealand. Blue, red and purple hedgehogs.
He crouched down, the small creatures backing up slightly on their thin, round legs but not showing any sign of distress. On a hunch, he held out his hand slowly, fingertips extended.
“Carter…”
Alan could hear John’s movements behind him, the safety clicking off his laser. He held still as the larger of the two mop-like looking critters inched toward his fingers and then slowly extend its nose to touch his finger. It was like a small electrical pop at the moment of contact and then Alan’s vision was momentarily clouded with a whirling, flickering mass of color that was vaguely man shaped, which just as quickly cleared as he found himself holding the creature in his hand. It was very soft. He stood and turned to face John, holding the small animal that felt as if it were purring.
“Carter I should shoot you on general principle. That’s not the way to find out if the wildlife is dangerous or not. For all you know, that thing is the local scorpion.”
“Well, I’m still here. And I was right. The fur on this little guy would make a great sweater.” Alan stood, gently stroking the small animal. A movement at his feet caught his attention and he could feel the creature he held whistle to its companion. The smaller one looked from Alan to John, and Alan could see its fur fluff. Before he could speak a word, the creature all but threw itself against the Commander’s legs. John reflexively aimed his laser down, but did not fire. The small thing simply did not seem to pose a threat, although that could be a ploy as the Alphans well knew.
John reached down and touched the small animal, its fur rippling in apparent delight. John looked at Alan in frank surprise. “Alan, when you touched that thing, did you…?”
“Yeah, saw a man-shaped wash of orange and yellow colors. You, too?”
“No, it was greens and browns. You know what it was?”
“No.”
“I’m not sure, Alan, but I think those were our auras.”
~~~~~~~~
Joyful whistles filled the air.
~~~~~~~~
“Hey, Sandra, come see what I found. I hope you like pets.”
Sandra looked up from the computer as Alan walked into the large, dry cave they were using as a command center for now. Working with the logistical data from the hastily self-taught meteorologists, she had just about finished her contribution to the upcoming placement of the all-important weather and communication satellites. Alan and a team of pilots were going to be placing them in orbit within the next few days.
She turned around to see Alan holding a blue and purple ─something─ against his chest. She jumped slightly when it moved and large black eyes looked down at her. “It’s alive?”
Alan smiled. “Yeah. And it purrs. Or something close enough as to make no difference.”
Sandra rose from her seat and walked over to Alan, standing close enough for him to bend over and kiss her on the cheek. She blushed. The small animal watched both Alphans intently. Sandra glanced at Alan for permission and then stretched out a hand toward the tempting softness. Alan smiled at her look of amazement when the creature reached out toward Sandra and touched her with its nose.
“What was that?”
“If John’s right, that was your aura. He’s got one of these beasties, too. Said his wife used to paint auras back on Earth as a hobby and his was the same colors he saw when he touched his critter. Here.” Alan passed the animal to Sandra and smiled as he watched her almost melt into the creature’s liquid, black eyes.
~~~~~~~~
The elder found his sibling late that night. She was in another of these strange caverns they had found themselves carried within, but was easily able to join him once her creature had fallen asleep. Like the beast, these strange creatures slept at night. Unlike the beast, they were colorful and life-filled. They felt right. They chased away the beasts and knew love and laughter.
After a joyful reunion with much caressing and grooming, they ran side by side to the nearby woods. They had joyful news to share with kin. Soul-mates had been found.
~~~~~~~~
Maisey was tired, bone-deep tired. So tired that even her hair was tired. Even though she worked every day till she was just about ready to drop, she just couldn’t seem to get a good night’s sleep here in this strange place. She knew she had permission to sleep in late since she didn’t have to be on duty until lunch prep started, but she just couldn’t keep her eyes closed none once the other girls got going. Sleep seemed out, but just maybe she could get some time to herself. Maisey made her way down the slippery path to the muddy wallow she had discovered a few weeks back. As far as she knew, she was the only one who came her. And she liked it that way. For some reason, this place reminded her of home. Georgia, that was, not this strange planet with too big trees, weird colored clouds and funny grass. Maybe it was the color of the mud, a dark reddish color that just felt right.
The thin, mousey woman with
mouse-brown hair climbed up the overhanging rock for a better look at the
gently bubbling mud. She stretched out
on her stomach and rested her chin on her hands as she looked at the large
wallow. She knew that the stuff was
actually cool to the touch and had a funny, slippery feel. She kinda liked the way it dried on her skin
and could be peeled right off. It was
just like taking off a kitchen glove that kept its shape right fine. Maisey squinted her eyes and looked around
the edge of the mud. Yep, there they
were. Those funny cookie-cutter shaped
punched out holes. Some days they were
there, and some days they weren’t. Maisey had no idea what caused them and she really just wished Juanita
was here. She’d be right curious about
them.
The dietary tech brushed a tear off her cheek. Poor Juanita. She would’ve really liked this weird place. She’d been the one who loved to get out and about. Instead she was dead and gone and left behind on Alpha. It just wasn’t fair. Juanita was why Maisey had joined the Marines and had left her grandma back in Macon. Juanita was why she had ended up in foreign places like Germany, Alpha and New Mexico. And if she hadn’t gotten in that Balor’s way, Juanita wouldn’t have ended up in Medical Center hooked up to all those crazy machines. They hadn’t done her no good as it turned out. And once they’d found this planet and the Commander had decided they’d all have to leave Alpha, Doc Mathias had called her to Medical Center to hold Juanita’s hand. He turned off all the machines and stood by Maisey’s side until Juanita took her last gasping breath. That nice nun-lady, Miss Betty, had said a prayer and kept Maisey company for a little while. She missed Juanita something fierce with a sadness that left her feeling blue and twisted-up inside.
“Hey, Maisey-girl, what you doing out here by yourself?”
Maisey jumped in sheer startlement but then looked up into the early morning sunglare and made out Jack Pearson by his bulky shoulders and Northern twang. She couldn’t decide if she was happy to be found out or not.
“Nothin’”
Jack folded his legs and sat right down next to her. He nodded his head agreeably and squinted down to see what Maisey had been looking at. He shrugged after a little and then turned back to look at her.
“How you doing? I mean, after Joe tried to…”
Maisey shrugged and turned away to look at the mud again. She didn’t want to talk about that. And Joe hadn’t just tried to, he’d gotten what he wanted, all right. She couldn’t stop the slow tears.
“Ah, Maisey-girl, it’ll be okay.” He awkwardly patted her shoulder. “Joe won’t try that again. Not after I ed..u..cated him on proper manners like I did. And if he does, you just look my way and I’ll have another go at him.”
Maisey had to smile just a little at that. Joe now had a gap-toothed smile that not even Dr. Fentiman could fix. Served him right. Without looking at the lunar surface tech right beside her, she stood and led the way down to the mud. Jack obligingly followed.
She squatted down by the edge of the wallow and looked real close at those little round holes. She felt the shadow Jack made as he stood behind her. She reached out and traced a little cup-like hollow that was partially full of water, expecting it to give way like the beach sand did on the Carolina sandbars. It didn’t. Huh. It was hard-like, and her fingers just slipped right down into the tiny puddle inside. She reached out her hand and touched a few more. Same.
“Jack? Come see what you make of this. It’s all hard and slick-like.”
Jack looked down at the young woman in amazement. That was the most he had ever heard Maisey say in one sentence. Jack joined her and looked closely at the little holes that were just as Maisey said. Hard, slick and reminding him somehow of the clay pots his sister had made back on Earth after they’d been glazed and fired. He looked around and noticed the holes seemed to come in pairs. He stood and looked up and down the length of the wallow.
“Maisey, I think these just may be footprints. And look over there.” Jack pointed across the wallow and with a quick glance to see if she would follow, led the slippery way around the perimeter to the far side. He bent over and touched one of the many funny coved out areas all along this side. They were hard and slippery, too. And surrounded by a veritable herd of those little round holes, most large but now he could see some small ones mixed in.
“Jack. Come here.”
Jack looked up and saw Masiey now a few meters away near a line of large shrubby, ferns right along the edge of the wallow. She was bent over and peering below some of the bluish fronds. He walked up behind her.
“Come look see. They sorta look like those funny houses out in New Mexico. I saw bunches of them when Juanita and me …” Maisey gulped down a tear as she finished in a strangled whisper. “They was all smooth and rounded like these here.”
Jack walked over. There were small rounded humps all bunched up under the fronds, for all the world like a cluster of giant red grapes. Some were small, say thirty or so centimeters across, but some were fair sized up to a meter. It kinda looked like balloons had been blown up and covered with that funny mud, and then the balloons popped. And every so often there were holes with smooth edges that looked just like little cat doors missing their flaps.
Something Maisey had just said seemed to want to come out in a memory. Something about New Mexico. Jack stopped and stared at the funny humps in front of him. They sorta reminded him of an apartment complex all bunched up like they were. But the slick, roundedness of them seemed… YES!
“Maisey my girl, you’re a genius! They do look like adobe houses. And just maybe we can use this stuff to build us some real places to live. This stuff seems strong and it obviously holds up to water. I was pretty good in construction back on Earth…” Jack trailed off as he saw Maisey starring intently at one of the small openings about half-way up the grape-stack.
Out of one hole stuck a small, purplish snout twitching curiously below two huge, fearful, black eyes.
~~~~~~~~
Sandra looked at the chronometer, finally recalibrated for their new day. 1633 hours. The last of the Eagles should now be approaching their positions. She sat at the console between Paul and David, the Main Screen finally hung on the cavern’s wall in the proper relative position. They worked smoothly and competently together as they had on Alpha, but now toward the goal of securing their new planetary home. Paul scanned the readouts on his console and coordinated the Eagles’ dance high above the planet as they inserted the satellites into their geosynchronous orbits. He provided oversight and flight plans while Sandra kept track of the individual teams. With luck, the satellites should last until the Alphans had established a firm hold on the planet. Whether they could maintain a level of tech able to fix and repair them later remained to be seen.
The work went smoothly with the Commander’s team and Alan’s finishing the positioning of each of their two satellites. Peter’s group was on the far side of the planet and running late, and out of communication until his satellites were functioning. Sandra stroked the small creature curled up in her lap as she waited for the final confirmation.
“Command center to Eagle 5, can you read us yet?” Paul asked for Sandra’s benefit. Sandra gave a small smile of appreciation and returned her gaze to her monitors. The small creature, unimaginatively christened ‘Blue’ by Alan, purred and nuzzled her hand whenever she stopped. Another fifteen minutes passed.
“Rockwell here, we’re up and running. The final satellite is confirmed functioning. We’re heading in.” There was a round of applause from those standing along the walls. Paul waved his hand for quiet.
“Affirmative, Peter. Link up with John and Alan and head on down.”
The Alphans’ chance of long term survival had just improved.
~~~~~~~~
Peter landed his Eagle neatly in formation with the other five. He and Kevin Taylor powered down and headed back to strip out of their orange flight suits. It had been a long day, especially with Kevin having to go EVA to convince that final satellite to align properly, but he felt the satisfaction of a job well done. That feeling dwindled away when he saw Carter standing by Eagle 1.
“Go on, Kevin. I need to talk with Alan.”
The lanky Canadian Ojibwa looked between the Captain and Peter and nodded. They needed to settle out their differences before it started to show up in their flying. Any distraction was dangerous as they tried to understand and learn their new environment. He wrapped up some loose ends and headed back to the settlement with Fraser and the others for some food and company. Maybe Sue Crawford would be free.
Peter watched the pilots leave and then turned to find Alan. He felt uncomfortable challenging authority, but just now Alan wasn’t his senior officer. He walked up to the Australian and waited to be noticed.
“Peter. Good job up there.”
Peter didn’t reply immediately. When he did it was with a question.
“I was scheduled to fly co-pilot on Eagle 3 with you. You changed it at the last moment. Why? Don’t want to be seen flying with me?”
Alan looked surprised at the barely contained anger and hostility. He quickly controlled his face and gave the honest answer.
“No— but it’s going to be this way from now on.” Alan watched Peter bristle. “Look, mate, this way if one of us ever goes down, Sandra won’t be left alone.”
Alan grinned at Peter’s nonplussed expression and clapped him on the back as he turned to follow Kevin and the other pilots home.
~~~~~~~~
His kin he had brought among the new strangers sang a joyful song. Many had found the colors of these others to be in harmony. Mated pairs found their bonds strengthened. Children no longer feared the hunters. It was a new era come to The People. A joyful new time.
~~~~~~~~
The mood among the Alphans was jubilant. The satellites were successfully placed, Patrick Osgood had just announced the discovery of a native clay that had significant potential to be a building material for homes and workshops, and the dinner provided by Carol Cromartie and her dietary team included the first of the fresh vegetables force-grown from Alphan seed in the native soil. And ten more of the small mop-like creatures had come out of the woods on their own accord.
The lights overhead slowly flicked on as the sun set. The Alphans at Koenig’s request had gathered in the large clearing for the evening meal, ordering themselves into smaller and larger groupings according to family and section. The Commander wandered among the crowd offering words of praise and encouragement or simply showing off his new small companion, now named Gonzo for reasons known only to him.
John finished his walk around the common area and found a chair at the table that included his closest co-workers: Darrell, Paul, Tanya, Sandra, Alan and David. And Peter. John spared a second glance at Peter. The young pilot looked uncomfortable sitting at what in essence was the command table, but he clearly wasn’t about to give ground to Alan in a casual setting. Darrell indicated the empty chair next to his and John sat. The dinner proceeded with more conversation than food, but the sense of relief was pervasive.
“So, John, you do remember the significance of this day, do you not?” The CMO was his usual pretentious self.
Sandra nodded her head, but the others looked lost.
“Of course. And I’m sure others besides Sandra do, too.” John passed Gonzo to Tanya as he stood and waited until the assembled Alphans fell silent, all eyes on him.
“Tonight makes the one year anniversary since Breakaway. And frankly, I didn’t expect to live long enough to see it.” There were nods of agreement and some mutters from around the field as people did mental head counts or checked watches still set to old Earth dates. “We’ve lost a lot of good people, but I’m sure they wouldn’t begrudge us our successes here on Terra Alpha.” A round of ‘here, here’s’ was joined by a smattering of clapping.
“To remember those lost, I would like a moment of silence.” Heads bowed in respect and not a few tears were seen. The ever present winds whistled overhead in the branches of the tall, sheltering trees. Gradually, eyes were re-focused on Koenig.
“We have a long way to go, people, but all the data from Medical, Technical and Engineering tell us this planet will make a good home for us and our children…” Koenig smiled slightly at the cheers, “So, to that end, we need to start considering a second community. It would be best not to over extend our resources in one location, and within a few years I would like to see us in several different valleys. But for now, spreading ourselves out in this valley should suffice.” And it would provide a buffer against total loss by disease or misfortune. Koenig didn’t need to add that aloud, his people were quite well aware of the challenges ahead of them.
“To start, we’ll need to divide ourselves initially into two functioning units. I’ll delegate the actual division to section heads except for the following: Security Chief Eleanor Parks, Dr. Darrell Wandell and Technical Section Head David Kano will be assigned to the new settlement. Comptroller Paul Morrow, Service Head Sandra Benes and Captain Alan Carter will stay here. I’ll expect reports within the next two weeks as to the division of labor as well as the division of supplies.”
John surveyed the room seeing the expected surprised looks at his decision. Paul would have been the logical choice to head the second community, but Tanya had suggested other arrangements that had been found mutually acceptable. Other than that, people reacted as John would have predicted. Many accepting, some doubtful, a few hostile. It would work out. After making eye contact with as many as he could, John nodded his head firmly and took back his seat, accepting a bright-eyed Gonzo from Tanya.
‘That was some announcement there, Commander.”
John looked at Carter and grinned. “Just enough uncertainty to keep people from becoming complacent.”
Paul snorted at that. Complacency was the least of his concerns at present. One of the Main Mission operatives approached the table and leaned over Paul’s shoulder with a quiet request.
“Certainly, Kate. Excuse me.” Paul stood and pushed in his chair and unobtrusively rested a hand briefly on Tanya’s shoulder. Ever proper, he briefly acknowledged his senior officer before leaving. “Commander.” Walking toward the hut he shared with Tanya, he smiled and nodded at something Kate said. He returned from the shadows quickly and pulled over a stool near a group of Alphans obviously looking forward to just this. There was laughter and bantering that was too distant from the command table to be heard clearly, but soon enough the sounds of a guitar playing a Beatles’ medley filled the air.
“He’s very good,” Darrell complemented after the third song.
“Yes, he is,’” Tanya agreed with obvious pride as she stood to join the group nearer the music.
Conversations continued with many coming over to their table to speak with their respective section heads. John leaned back in his chair pleased to see his people relaxed, but the longing for his wife a physical ache as he watched so many pair off.
The music grew more eclectic as
the night grew darker. Others took
turns on Paul’s guitar, with obviously varied skill levels that provoked good
natured jibbing. Finally, a tall,
stocky man from technical sporting a beard and highly nonregulation pony tail
took the guitar. The silence from the noisy
crowd that had been dancing to the music caught everyone’s attention. All heads turned as Jim Sontern started to
play. Soon, there was no noise except
the wind through the trees and the lovely, haunting strains of classical guitar
pieces of great beauty and power.
Darrell leaned over to John as the music continued. “How are you holding up, John?”
The Commander looked at his CMO and saw the usual sardonic expression was missing and only sincere concern was present. “Well enough.”
Darrell let his eye’s roam the crowd where couples were starting to dance again, now slower and with more intimacy. He watched Peter lead Sandra to the dance ‘floor’ past Tanya and Paul. He nodded toward the latter. “She will be good for you.”
“Yeah.”
Darrell turned back to John, some of his usual mocking nature returning. “At least you have the option of finding, ah, companionship. I’m rather limited.”
John stopped to consider that last. Darrell was right, on both accounts. He heard Darrell sigh.
“You know, John, if that blasted nuclear pile could have waited another few weeks I would’ve made it home. Rumors had that a pretty space medicine specialist was to be tapped to fill my considerable shoes. One Helena Russell by name.”
The name only rang vague bells for John. “Lee Russell’s wife?”
“Correct. And Bob has been ruing that poor timing every day since Breakaway. For his sanity alone, you are wise to separate the medical staff. He’s a good doctor, but we’ve never seen eye to eye. He should do a more than adequate job here for you.” And with that, the tall Canadian stood and bowed slightly in John’s direction. “I believe I will turn in. Goodnight.”
John continued to stroke Gonzo as he watch the CMO leave and Alan return carrying two plastic cups of spring water. He passed one to John. After months of recycled water, this was as good as fine wine. Thanking Alan, John noticed the pilot was flushed and slightly sweaty. His new small fuzzy companion had somehow perched itself on his shoulder and was hanging on tightly to hair and jacket, its bright eyes taking in everything around it.
“Dancing?” John asked as he sipped his drink.
“Yeah. But I think it was Blue here that had the ladies’ attention.” Alan reached up and scratched the blue and purple animal who responded with a head bump. “You should give it a go.”
John just shook his head slightly. Jean had loved to dance, not him. The two men sat and watched the others, although John noted Alan’s eyes didn’t stray far from Sandra.
Eventually, the rising of the second, smaller rose–colored moon signaled the end of the festivities and groups started to head off for bunks or beds. John exchanged a glance with Tanya as she and Paul headed for their quarters. There would be plenty of time later for them to sort out a more formal arrangement. When Tanya had indicated she planned on staying put, Paul had been the one who had declined the offer of command of the second community.
John watched couples and threesomes walk into the darkness. He was happy to see that the all-too-focused David had been corralled by June. Peter and Sandra were among the last to stop dancing. To John, it looked as if Sandra was uncertain what to do next. As the overhead lights automatically cycled down for power conservation, to John’s surprise it was Peter who whispered something in Sandra’s ear and then left her side with a quick glance in Alan’s direction.
John chose to ignore the exchange and sat staring at the two small moons, stroking the small creature in his arms who purred soothingly.
~~~~~~~~
The sounds of amazement whistled through the tree branches around the world. From kin group to kin group, valley to valley, those who had found new friends told of the wonder to those kin still in the woods. And the message of The People went forth:
Help them survive. Protect them.
~~~~~~~~
~ 13 years after landing
‘Why did she have to die, Daddy?’ Jean leaned against her father as the tears ran down her face.
John pulled his daughter into an embrace as she still stroked the soft blue fur of her pet laying still in death. “I don’t know. There’s still an awful lot we don’t know about them.”
He hated to see his daughter sad, but there was nothing he could do but be here for her and help her bury the small creature in due time. They sat together for a while just reminiscing about all the fun Jean had had with Gonzo, all the places they had explored and all the things the small animal had shown them.
Jean’s tears finally slowed and she looked at her father. “I don’t think I want another one, Daddy. It hurts too much when you lose someone you love.”
John smiled sadly and brushed the damp, brown hair from his daughter’s face. “I know. Maybe someday, though.”
Many of the blue and purple creatures that lived among the Alphans had had young who had also bonded to adults and children, but this was the first of the small animals that had died. He just wished his daughter didn’t have to be the one to experience the first loss of one of these small natives.
“The waterfall, Daddy.”
John nodded. That would be perfect. Following Jean’s lead, he picked up the small hand shovel and followed her as she gently gathered up the small body and walked out the open door of their adobe home. They walked approximately ten meters toward the woods when John reached out and stopped the child with a touch on her shoulder.
“Jean, look.”
Jean looked first at her father and then toward the direction he indicated. There, lined up in a loose semi-circle in front of the woods, were fifteen or so moppets. Some she recognized by their coats to be Alphan moppets, but about half were unknown to her.
One, a large blue and purple creature she recognized as being Uncle Alan’s, paced slowly toward her on his too fragile legs. Although they were as silent as always, Jean could feel in her bones the keening from her dead friend’s brother and the others. Blue stood in front of her looking up, his eyes grief-filled and his entire little body downcast. He looked at his sister’s body as Jean bent over and then sat on the ground next to him. He snuffled his sister and then laid his small snout over her face. Three of the larger creatures approached slowly from behind Blue and carefully placed their bodies under their dead sister and, as John gently withdrew Jean’s hands from her pet, walked away into the woods bearing the lifeless form on their backs.
Jean threw herself into her father’s arms and sobbed. John lowered himself to the ground holding Jean and shed a tear or two himself at the simple dignity and humanity he had seen. After a while, as Jean settled, Blue approached her again, this time followed by five smallish moppets. Blue twined himself around the seated humans and then nudged Jean toward the waiting ones. Following an unheard prompt, she moved closer to the small group and looked at the small creatures looking at her. One by one they approached and stared at her searchingly. Finally, four turned away and a small, blue and red variegated child-moppet trotted up her and reached out its snout. After a quick, reassuring nod from her father, Jean reached out her hand and touched the small creature. Her tears changing to startled joy.
John was amazed by what he had just seen. These, no, he couldn’t consider them mere animals any more, had a culture of sorts. They communicated among themselves, grieved and took care of their dead. They made art. They even looked after the strange aliens they had chosen to live with. The Alphans had suspected they were more than simply pets, especially those who had been befriended by one. Now John knew that for certain. He reached down to push off the ground and was briefly surprised to feel soft fur. There was the remembered wash of green and brown, now scattered with a sparkle of gold, as he saw himself from the moppet’s perspective, and then he found his hands full of the happy creature.
John and Jean and their new family members followed Blue as they returned home.
~~~~~~~~
~20 years after landing…
The sun would be rising soon. John had, almost, gotten used to the fact that the sunrise was more green and purple than pink and red. Just one of the many differences of their new home. He loved sitting here on his ledge where he could see the sun rise over the sheltering mountains and, by merely turning his head in the opposite direction, at the end of a day watch the sun set over the fertile delta that stretched to the sea. He had spent many a sunrise sharing that love with his daughter. She used to laugh at his descriptions of the colors of sunrise and sunset on Earth, and now his grandson did the same. Curled up in John’s arms, little Robbie was still asleep, exhausted from being up late waiting on the arrival of his new sibling. His new bother, or sister, had yet to put in his appearance and that was a worry for John. This labor seemed to be going on forever, although he knew objectively it had only been eight hours or so.
John rested his chin briefly on the silky brown hair on the child. He loved the children, but hated this part of it. Jean was his only biological child, and to be honest, the one he was closest to, but he counted all the children of Tanya and Sandra as part of his family. He had fretted when those two had gone through their labors, just as much as Paul, Alan or Peter had. Worse, according to Bob Mathas. And now he had a new generation to worry about. He could never quite forget the fever that had claimed three pregnant women just four summers ago, and, of course, there was Annie Fraser.
Even in the pre-dawn dark, a shadow passed over John’s face. Everything had gone well with Annette’s fifth pregnancy, until the very end. Darrell had said the blood clot had been massive and she had died very quickly. It had only been the saving grace that Darrell had had been near and able to do the Caesarian that had saved little Josiah. Bill had been devastated and unable to cope with a newborn, even with the help of his older children. The Alphans rallied as they always did, and fifteen-year-old Jean had relocated to the other community for a year to help. John hadn’t liked her taking on all that responsibility so young, but her generation had never had much chance at a normal childhood. And he knew his family must set the example.
Jean had come back pregnant.
John sighed and shifted slightly to relieve stiff muscles, the child a limp warmth in his lap. He was not proud of his memories of that discussion with his daughter, nor the one earlier with Tanya who had broken the news. On Earth, a pregnant sixteen-year-old would have been considered promiscuous, here it was survival. He accepted that. What had caused the infamous Koenig tempers was who the father was. Jean swore she had been the instigator and an active participant and that no coercion had been used. Bill had had the good grace to look embarrassed whenever in John’s sight. To be fair, Bill was a good provider for all his children, Robbie included. And John supposed it was good that the boy had older brothers and sisters to call upon at need. Jean had moved back home before Robbie’s birth and had not considered moving since. Bill and his brood visited often, although the pilot turned fisherman prudently stayed out of John’s sight. The father of her current pregnancy was one of Verdeschi’s boys and the lad planned on relocating here. Guido, Marco… John wasn’t sure. He couldn’t keep them all straight.
Damn, what was taking so long? He could see movement through the windows but nothing specific. His agitation was communicated to the blue and red lump pressed close to his side. John rested his had apologetically on the creature’s head and it settled with a whuff and contented thoughts of green and gold.
Tanya had four other children besides Jean, three by Paul and one by Alan. After Paul’s near fatal fall ten years back, John had become much more involved with the children, although he still maintained his small separate dwelling for privacy. Tanya’s attention had been of necessity focused on Paul’s recovery, and Sandra’s family had filled the gaps for the half-year it took for Paul to regain his independence.
It was now less dark, although the sun had yet to rise, and John could watch the adobe-like dwellings below more easily and even see a hint of the grain fields beyond. They had recently expanded those fields. The women of his generation had doubled their initial 250 survivors, and now, already, the grandchildren numbered close to a hundred.
There was movement at the home site next to theirs, and the door opened to let out two young adults. Even in this light John could see the silver hair that belonged to Danae Benes and the vibrant red hair of her younger sister Eliza, each carrying an infant with casual competence. Darrell assured him that both girls were Alan’s, but was at a loss to explain their appearance. Peter’s two sons looked like him and had his quiet temperament, but these two seemed to have ignored the basic genetic rules. The girls, young women and mothers actually John reminded himself, were high-spirited and brilliant. And Danae bid well on becoming his successor. She had her mother’s ability to see through conflicting data to what was needful and her father’s natural ability to draw people to her. Even now, many of the original Alphans deferred to her leadership.
Deep in thought, John did not see the door open to his own family’s home and the tall, still lithe form that climbed the path.
“Here, let me take the boy.” John jumped at the familiar, softly Russian accented voice. Tanya sat down next to him sparing a smile and a pat for the small mop-like creature at John’s side. She leaned over and placed a light kiss on John’s cheek. “She’s waiting for you.”
John looked quickly down to the home and back to Tanya. She smiled as she scooped up their slowly awakening grandson.
John stood quickly and made his way down the path, the small fluffy animal projecting happy yellow thoughts. Things must be all right, then, thought John. The door opened as he arrived and Sandra slipped out, squinting slightly in the dawn’s light. She ducked her head with a small, tired smile and held the door open. He crossed to the back room where he found his beautiful daughter flushed and tired but very pleased with herself.
“Dad, come meet Ruth.”
October 12, 2006
MGK
Since October 12, 2006