posted 12-14-98 04:13 PM ET        

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Hello everybody. I have posted on this forum under a variety of names (I have password trouble), so I'm not as new my present post count would suggest. In truth I have been lurking and occasionally posting since the summer.

Anyway, I've read a few of the future chronicles and thought that I'd try my hand at one of my own. Um, with the permission of the Olympians of course. Now I know that the tradition in these stories is to leave them open for the others on the forum to create their own characters and have interactions and what not. Because this story involves some pretty complicated ideologies, as well as a few early plot twists, I must ask that for the moment nobody create any characters living on the planet. I am going to post the first five chapters today. If you want to create some characters on the Unity, then that's fine, but please wait until at least chapter seven or eight before creating characters on the planet (by then most of the plot twists and ideology should be worked out). I'll post the next group of chapters tomorrow morning.

Disclaimer: This is a work of ORIGINAL FICTION based on SMAC. Only one of the characters is based on a real life person, and he doesn't care (I will say who tomorrow, because if I do now it will spoil it). Any resemblance to reality is a figment of your deranged imagination. Any resemblance of characters or names to characters and names that you've used in your own stories is also a figment of your imagination, and an unhappy coincidence. I'm not trying to rip you off. Really! I'm sorry if you think that I am, but I really don't have the time to read every story in the universe to make sure that I'm not accidentally ripping anybody off.

Without further ado, here is chapter one.

posted 12-14-98 04:15 PM ET            

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Chapter 1

Administrator Julian was feeling irritated but hopeful as he walked down the poorly lit corridor. Irritated that the Skywatcher had waken him at this time of night, but hopeful that whatever it was that was so pressing would be the good news that he had been hoping to hear for the last three years. The door to the observatory opened automatically as he approached, heralding his arrival with a mechanical whir.
As he entered, the men and women in the room stood at attention and gave him the traditional sign of respect, showing that they were now in his command and would obey his orders willingly and to the letter. The Administrator made the appropriate response gesture, indicating his acceptance of responsibility to coordinate their actions while they were under his command. The hand signals had originated in the Revolutionary Army, and had been a serious and important part of the culture. Now they had become the traditional greetings exchanged between any group and their leader. Julian suspected that the significance of this history was lost on the younger Citizens in the room.
"Civilization triumphs over Chaos" opened the Skywatcher, a typical greeting.
"Order is Freedom" replied Julian. "What is at hand?"
"Administrator sir, you recall the fast moving body we detected several weeks ago?"
"Yes. You said that it would miss the planet by over a million kilometers."
"Well, sir, it� it's slowing down sir."
"WHAT?!"
"From this we can only conclude that it is a starship of some kind."
"Well then, why wasn't I informed that the portal had opened again?"
"Sir, the portal did not open. It has not opened since the last supply vessel came three years ago."
"And you're certain of this? There is no way that the storm could have blocked out our scanners long enough for�"
"Absolutely certain sir. That portal did not open. Regardless, sir, the starship in question could not have safely fit through the portal at that speed, nor is it coming from the correct direction."
The Administrator sat down and rubbed his forehead. This was all too strange. He had been hoping that whatever strange hyperspatial anomaly had rendered the portal matrix inoperative was finally over, but he had never expected something like this. He tried to keep a calm face. He was the Administrator here, and the leader of this group. It was his duty as Administrator to coordinate and unify the actions of everybody in the colony, and as the highest placed leader in the room, it was also his duty to control the actions of the group. If he were to show signs of fear, they would become nervous, and he would have failed in his duties. That was not acceptable. He had to be firm, for the others were depending on him to perform his duty, just as much as he depended on them to perform theirs.
"Very well then, it is not the re-supply vessel as we had hoped. We must not loose heart now, citizens, for we must triumph in the face of any adversity that nature should hand us. The supply shortage is serious, but not critical, and we are quickly learning how to synthesize what we need from the materials available to us. And I know that many of you were looking foreword to the end of your rotations, but think of this: We are on the frontier! We are here, cut off from the light of Nexus by the void of space, on this chaotic and untamed world. We have been chosen by destiny to bring order to this remote world of entropy, to bring the laws of Civilization over the this place ruled by the laws of nature! Think of all the youth of Nexus that would give anything for this opportunity to carve out our place in the Great Order! And we can all rest well, knowing that Civilization is safe from the dangerous people we are reeducating here. Citizens, I assure you that the best Developers on Nexus are working towards a solution to the portal crisis, and that soon we shall be relieved. For now, we must be firm, and strong, for we have yet another challenge do deal with."
The crew looked visibly relieved, and Julian smiled inwardly. Just like the old days, giving his pep talks during the Revolution. Administrators were selected for a variety of talents, but charisma was among the highest requirements. Inspiration was one of the key duties of the Administrator. He would have personally been more inspired by tales of honor and glorious battle, by a call to arms, but this younger generation seemed to respond better to speeches about the inevitable triumph of order over chaos. Julian was interrupted from his reminiscence by a dark though.
"Skywatcher Yovar, have we been able to determine whether that craft is one of ours?"
"Administrator, sir, we are not sure."
"Not sure?"
"No sir. The high neutrino emissions that have accompanied the craft since it began decelerating have lead us to believe that it uses some sort of fusion propulsion mechanism."
"A brute force method by any measure. So it isn't one of ours then�"
"Well sir, we cannot be certain. The vessel is technologically similar to our own ships, and its elemental composition is almost identical to that of the first ships made at the Pioneer Orbital Platforms when they opened two decades ago."
"But travelling through normal space?"
"We cannot rule out the possibility that it is one of our vessels, constructed to travel since the breakdown of the portal matrix."
"We also cannot rule out the possibility that it is an alien vessel, and possibly a hostile one. They could be invaders, or colonists. For all we know, those infernal worms and locusts that plague the surface of this world are their terraforming tools, and we are the invaders."
"Definitely a possibility, but I still think that we should wait until we know more before charging up the defensive cannons. If it is one of ours, or a group of non-hostile aliens, we would be wasting precious energy."
"Agreed. But I find it unlikely that it is one of ours. In three years� that's hardly enough time to travel anywhere using fusion for propulsion, without violating the laws of relativity."
"True, sir. And we have no data to suggest that the craft is warping space any more than is usual for an object of its mass and density. And sir, if you look at this display here, you can see that the likely point of origin of the ship is�"
"Yes, I know. Not possible for them to be coming from there. Unless this is some kind of trick, in which case we should prepare for a hostile alien force. Who knows how they will react to our Doctrine of the Great Order. God knows that the counter-revolutionaries back home didn't take kindly to it, and that our very purpose here is to keep those unsafe people as far away as possible from Nexus."
"Yes, sir. There may be dark days ahead sir."
But the Administrator was too lost in though to reply. There was something else� something about the ship's point of origin, something that he remembered from his childhood. A little piece of history, buried beneath the flood of his memories of the Revolution. Certainly nobody in this room would know, they were all too young. He would have to ask the colony's Historian. Actually, a Conclave was in due order. This was too big of an event to hold from the other Chancellors. Julian spoke his thoughts to the Page, who was already anticipating his instructions.
"Page Elizabeth, call a Conclave meeting for 0400 immediately, and prepare the Council Hall for our arrival. Tell Historian Chu to be there early, as I wish to speak to him about a critical matter."
"Prepare Council Hall for Conclave at 0400 and inform Chancellors of meeting, instruct Historian Chu to arrive early, yes sir. Anything else sir?"
"No, that will be all. I will be waiting in my quarters. Inform me when Chu is ready."
"Inform you when Chu is ready, yes sir. I live to serve the Great Order."
With that, she left. This statement was the traditional statement of compliance, and implies the great pleasure and honor that accompanies service to the Great Order. Julian shook his head. Some of the aspects of the Doctrine of the Great Order were foreign to him, as he grew up in the chaotic times before the Revolution. These youngsters that he worked with had no understanding of what life had been like before� they had lived their lives in the comfort of a stable Caste society, a glorious Civilization where everybody knew their place and their purpose. But they were far from that place now� with thirty thousand dangerous political prisoners and criminals to re-educate. Five hundred entropists for every Citizen in the colony. It was a dangerous and delicate situation. Thus far the prisoners, or "students" as they were usually called, had responded well to their re-education, but what of this new situation, this alien ship? How would the delicate buds of their new ideology be affected by the exposure to an alien mentality? And there was that even worse possibility, a suspicion that the Administrator carried with him, that could spell doom for their struggling community. He needed to speak with the Historian to confirm first, but until then, he would be worrying that his memory was correct.
Then he realized that his dark thoughts would be affecting the crew around him, and decided that it would probably be prudent to retreat to his quarters.
"Carry on, Citizens. You will all watch the conclave, I trust?"
There were general sounds of affirmative, and one question.
"Administrator Julian, sir, will the students be allowed to watch?"
"No, Computator Jonas, they will not. This concerns possible security issues, and I would rather the volatile ones not get the idea that we will be distracted from watching over them. I must retreat to my quarters now to meditate. 'May the light of Source watch over you.'"
With that the Administrator left, leaving the Watchers to their speculation. He walked slowly back to his quarters in the darkness of the night cycle, hoping that Chu would respond quickly.

posted 12-14-98 04:16 PM ET            

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Chapter 2

Jarek Ingamar leaned against the wall of the Unity's bridge, with a hidden look of contempt on his face. He was a shrewd and cynical man, but only he knew that. Everybody else on board thought he was a charming and able security officer, which was exactly what he wanted them to think. Acting was all part of his job. So was being observant, and Jarek noticed things that few of the other crew members suspected. Jarek noticed the building tensions between the senior officers of the crew, the inherent disparity between their views of the world. Jarek found it pathetic, but he kept his opinions to himself. Jarek also realized that the captain was a weak and incompetent fool, plagued by sentimentality and cares for the lives of his crew. Jarek found that to be pathetic as well, but again, said nothing. He could already see that the foolish captain was doomed to fail, and that the real power struggle would be between this diverse group that had gathered here on the bridge.
There they were, as diverse a collection of viewpoints and ideologies as could be gathered. An egghead, a tree-hugger, a zealot, a lame pacifist, and of course, that enigmatic ego-freak Yang. These were the contenders for power among the command crew. But Jarek was certain that the traitorous insurgents that followed that Santiago woman would not give up simply because their leader was captured. They were contenders as well. Furthermore, this man by the name of Morgan was somehow free to walk about the ship, despite having been imprisoned for being a stowaway. Obviously he had some manner of power and influence on people, or he never could have made it onto the ship in the first place, much less talk the guards into letting him roam. He was one to be watched as well. One of these groups would rise triumphant in the end, and Jarek was determined to be there with them.
Jarek didn't really care about their ideologies. He had his own philosophy on life, and that was to always be on the winning side. It had been a very important philosophy to cling to when he had been an intelligence agent on Earth. Governments rose and fell so quickly that one always had to keep their options open if they were to stay employed� and alive. Here it was looking to be no different. No, Jarek had no time for morality, justice, purpose, or any such things. His ideology had served him well. That very ideology was what got him on to the ship, for he had seen no road to victory on that dying planet back home.
But here was a fresh start! A new world! And with it, new battle lines were being drawn, and new contenders to power were rising up. It was almost sad that history was about to repeat itself the way it had for thousands of years, but such was the natural order of things, and Jarek fit into that order quite well. He WOULD rise to the top, and he WOULD be on the winning side, no matter what the obstacles. All that remained was the actual conflict to begin, and the only obstacle in the path of that was the captain himself� the captain. Jarek glared at the captain with a fierce gleam in his eye. The captain would have to be eliminated, and Jarek Ingamar would have to be the man to do it. He was too impatient for the captain to kill himself through his own stupidity.
Jarek restrained his thoughts, lest they show on his face and give away his purpose. He had labored to get himself assigned to this room for a reason. He was here to listen in on those secret discussions that the command crew was always having. Perhaps they thought that because they were in the meeting room he could not hear them, but his ears were trained by years of experience. And this particular meeting sounded very interesting�
"Captain, whatever this is about, we don't have much time. Need I remind you that the ship is still falling apart, or that we will soon need to be reporting to our landing pods?"
That must be Zhakarov, though Jarek.
"No, you don't. I wouldn't have called this meeting if it did not concern our landing of Chiron. Ensign Peterson has a critical report to show us. Ensign?"
"This display here shows the first clear results of our scanner sweeps of the surface. As you all know, there have several severe storms over the surface since we arrived in the system that have prevented us from getting much of a clear picture. A composite of scans from the last several weeks shows this area here as having consistent energy readings, which until now we dismissed as anomalous. This morning the storms suddenly cleared and we were able to get clear readings for the first time. This red areas here indicate heat output, these shapes here are concentrations of metal, and these�"
There was a buzz of reactions in the room.
"My God�"
"Oh no�"
"Damn!"
"Quiet! People, Quiet! Ensign, can we definitively conclude from this that�"
"Yes sir, there is intelligent and technologically sophisticated life on the surface of Chiron."

posted 12-14-98 04:17 PM ET            

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Chapter 4

When he was certain that nobody would see him, Jarek laughed bitterly to himself. They had encountered what nobody had expected. Even years before the launch, all that anybody could talk about was how this was humanity's new chance, their fresh start. The mission to Alpha Centauri was supposed to be a clean slate, a whole new world for humanity. So much for that idea.
He wondered when the captain was planning on telling the rest of the crew that Chiron was inhabited. Not just with life, but with civilized beings. There could be millions or billions of them down there, huge cities just like on Earth. Wouldn't it be ironic, he thought, if they too had spoiled their world and were planning to launch a colony ship towards Earth, thinking it to still be a world of life?
Everything was different now. Jarek though about those poor ideological fools that would soon be the leaders of the crew. Poor Deirdre, it must kill her to think that her poor precious untouched world may have already been despoiled before she had a chance to save it. And how would that pacifist Lal respond if the natives interpreted the arrival of the Unity as an invasion force? Santiago and her hooligans would probably feel obligated to wipe out the species completely, as it would certainly pose a threat to human survival. And Miriam would insist on converting every lest one of them, even if she had to use force. Yang probably wouldn't like them either, since he didn't like anything that he couldn't control. Jarek wasn't sure whether Morgan would be disappointed that he would have to share the resources on Chiron with the natives, or be jubilant that he had a new and possibly unsuspecting people to exploit and cheat. Only Zhakarov would be pleased, for exchange between different peoples has always benefited the sciences.
Jarek laughed again. He didn't know who to feel sorry for, the desperate exiles in need of a home, or the poor wretches on the planet who would have to deal with an invasion of ideological lunatics, all itching to kill them or exploit them. Only one thing was certain now, and this was that Jarek would have a lot more work to do. There was a new contender now in the inevitable battle for supremacy. Before he had been weighing the strengths and weaknesses of the various crew members in whom he saw potential, but now he would have to decide whether the aliens on the surface were the likely winners. Whether they turned out to be superior or not, he would have to find some way to meet with them.
He sighed with irritation. Rather than becoming more simple, everything was getting more complex. Until Santiago had been captured, Jarek was leaning in favor of her victory. After all, her group's strict emphasis on survival at all costs was in many ways similar to his own philosophy of never getting caught on the wrong side of a war. But if she had been incompetent enough to be captured AND let Yang escape, then her cause was probably a lost one. He shook his head. Ideology was irrelevant. Only victory was of any importance to Jarek.
He reached his quarters and went in, clearing his mind of everything but his goal. There was no time for idle thoughts now, for he needed to prepare. Captain Garland was a fool and a weakling, and would have no place in the coming conflict. Jarek would make certain of this. Now he had only to devise a way of removing him without getting caught�