( Read the previous episodes of Journey to Centauri.) |
Journey to Centauri : Episode 26 part 2 Deirdre Skye stood in the observation room off of the command center and watched the great jewel of Planet pulse against the darkness. Alpha Centauri A, the system’s primary star, backlit Planet beautifully now, creating a halo around it, and Alpha Centauri B, the system’s second of three suns, cast another quality of light across the surface. She stared, mesmerized, at the new world. Without thinking she lifted one hand to touch the thick synthglass of the observation windows, brushing her fingers slowly along it. Its beauty…the swirls of colors…clouds, not unlike Earth clouds, and the jagged shape of land beneath, peeking out here and there. Behind her the door hissed open, but she did not look up. She was tired of talking to the Captain about Santiago and what had happened in the Greenhouse. She was tired of the worry creasing people’s faces…would the ship make it? Even now she could feel it shaking beneath her feet, shaking as if it would not hold together long. "Each sight more beautiful than the last," came a rich baritone behind her. She snapped around quickly…Morgan, the stowaway, stood in the doorway, staring at her and the shimmer of Planet behind her. "What are you doing here?" she asked tersely. "You should be under guard." He chuckled as if at a good joke. "Not now. Some crewmembers have interceded on my behalf, and the Captain has called me to consult about the ship. I know things that could prove useful, during this time of crisis." He nodded at Planet. "So that is the new world, my lady?" "Officer Skye, please" she said absently, turning away from him, inexplicably drawn to the sight of Planet again. "It is beautiful, yes?" "As beautiful as my finest diamonds." He stepped forward and lifted one hand, sweeping it expansively across the vista. "It is like a…coin, catching the light on a field of black velvet." Her eyes flickered to him. "It is what Earth used to be. Not for hundreds of thousands of years have Earth people been privileged with what we are seeing today. A world unspoiled." "A world rich with promise." He said, lifting his chin. "No." The word came out clipped and she bit her lip. He looked over at her, smiling in puzzlement. "You do not find promise here?" But his eyes searched her face rapidly. "It is your new world, a perfect world for your experiments. You have seen the preliminary scans…rich in nitrate, perfect for your hybrids." "Yes, I know. I meant…. Your goals are transparently obvious." One of his eyebrows shot up. "You see a world of natural resources, ready to be…exploited. Correct?" "Exploit." He turned the word over, considering it as if tasting a new wine. He looked at her appraisingly. "I wondered who would first use that word. We all…all life forms exploit, Officer. Your plants exploit the very air we exhale. We exploit them for food. But even the simplest of your hybrids would gladly kill us if they could, to stop from being torn from the earth and consumed." "Perhaps. But there is a balance. I do not have to tell you something so patently obvious. We did not come to ‘exploit.’" "Didn’t we? Sustained growth is a form of balance, and an inevitable one. The economic Holy Grail." "Your wealth means nothing here." "Wealth is the exchange of value. It is a way of representing energy traded. I don’t need to tell you this." He chuckled. "We will get along well on this new world, I can see. I will be sure to sell you the tie-dyes." "You seem to think your place in this world is preordained." She turned toward him, feeling the heat of the Centauri suns on the side of her face. "No, not at all. But I am here. I am a leader, and a manager. I’m sure Captain Garland can appreciate using any available talents to the fullest on this harsh new world." She shook her head. "It is a beautiful world. Why can’t you just appreciate its beauty?" "I can. I appreciate things of beauty. They are of high value. Planet…I value it, or I would not be here." "But your kind of thinking will destroy it," she shot back. He laughed at that, and she grew angry. "Why do you laugh like this?" "I see now your famous intensity, tending your hybrids night and day. I imagine you making a new breed of plants, one that can defend itself readily...the Lady Skye and her flame-throwing corn stalks, advancing on my trader’s outpost." He chuckled again. "We need traders, Lady. How else to turn worms into silk?" "Adam and Eve needed nothing, except their garden." "Now you sound like Godwinson," Morgan said quietly. He let out a deep breath and turned to leave, then stopped. "Perhaps humankind will taint Planet, or perhaps we have all learned something of value from Earth’s tragedy. But Lady," he said, and she turned to look at him with a flicker of annoyance. "If you wanted Planet to remain truly pure, you would not have come at all."
Check out the Preliminary Report on Chiron and the Report on the Alpha Centauri system (thanks to Del Cotter for help on these)! |
