Destiny Earth Read online

  “I guess I owe him one,” said Will staring back at his view screen.

  “Are you going to stare at grid 1G all year?” asked Jonas. “We have some very interesting results from the last survey of Eden.”

  “What do you have?” asked Will, quickly spinning around in his chair to face Jonas. He immediately lit up at any new developments concerning this area of Earth. In his heart, he still held out hope that there was a chance for a colony if he could just prove it was safe.

  “Plant life appears to be very similar to vegetation in the Folands, but as you know, we haven’t been given access rights yet to see how similar.”

  The Folands were a beautiful oasis compared to the rest of the planet. Its beautiful green landscape, crystalline mountains, and azure blue ocean, seemed out of place when contrasted with the barren, desert landscape that was the rest of Mars. It was nestled in the middle of the Sian province and was five hundred thousand square miles of pristine paradise. Since the Folands had become a protected planetary resource after the Sian war, it was rare to get a permit to visit, even under the guise of scientific study.

  “The military controls that place tighter than my Uncle Frank’s pants,” said Jonas, “and let me tell you, tight pants aren’t very flattering on an overweight, seventy-five year old man.”

  Will looked thoroughly disgusted at the blunt imagery behind Jonas’s statement.

  “You know, Jonas, I could have gone all year without that little piece of information. What about the water tests? I know you’d said there were some new developments. Great work. It only took two years,” said Will sarcastically.

  “Maybe if we still had a budget for the kind of equipment we need, this process could have moved a bit faster. Anyway, water tests show a slightly different chemical balance than our water, but it should be quite tasty. It may require a few trips to the hyper flush until our bodies adjust, but nothing drastic. Probably better quality than the water I drank last year in Cholan. Talk about needing the hyper flush!”

  Will scowled impatiently.

  “Sorry,” muttered Jonas, regaining his concentration. “There appears to be an abundance of fruit and vegetable life in all of the areas of Eden we’ve looked at. More importantly, no sign of any creature resembling Fat Bob or any of his friends. I think the ocean has acted as a natural barrier, and prevented them from populating this part of the planet. There are no signs that they’ve been there or ever would be.”

  Jonas began to show topographical images of the surrounding terrain as evidence of this theory. Will’s excitement and sadness began to build with this information, mostly because what Jonas was describing was a paradise untouched by human hands. A paradise he would never be able to experience on a world he would never know. It hurt too much to acknowledge what the data had shown. Two years ago, this would have provided powerful evidence that an Earth colony was possible; now it was bittersweet.

  As Will rubbed his eyes, which were strained from hours of observation, the communication console rang out. He looked up at the time, knowing this had to be a call from home. For a moment, he’d forgotten that it wasn’t his home anymore, then the harsh reality hit him as it did each day.

  “Hello, Daddy. Are you coming to pick me up soon?” Edena asked.

  Will had justified the long hours away from his daughter by telling himself it was all going to be worth it for her in the end. Now he suddenly felt guilt and remorse over this obsession with a project that had never provided his family with anything but the pain of not having him there. “Obsession” was a word he hated because all of his detractors used it to describe his life’s work. Now he knew it was exactly that. If this project hadn’t failed, it certainly wouldn’t have been so hard to accept the premise that it was an obsession, but now he had nothing to show for it.

  Something changed at that moment, something freed him to see that all of the things he thought were important up to that point were small in comparison to the sound of Edena’s voice and the love he had for her.

  “Daddy is leaving now, sweetheart. I won’t be staying late anymore.”

  2

  THE NEW DIRECTION

  James Devon stared out the window of the command deck looking at the star field ahead. He’d been wondering for months if he’d made the right decision to accept command of the Victory. Devon certainly didn’t question his ability to command; after all, he’d been the most famous military hero his world had ever known. It was the circumstances behind the decision that bothered him. When Larsen had asked him to join the Quorum almost two years ago, he’d become disgruntled with the military and the direction they seemed to be taking under the control of the new unity government. At the time, it seemed like the right choice, but now the tedium of the Victory’s mission was giving him second thoughts.

  “Lieutenant Shou, have we heard back from Manikar Control on our request to change heading?” commanded Devon.

  “No, sir!” Shou replied intensely as if she were a soldier in basic training. Devon commanded great respect from his crew but often wished they would just relax a bit when they were around him.

  “How are we supposed to make judgments on course corrections, when we can’t get responses fast enough to be able to make them?” He didn’t really expect a response, but he wasn’t surprised when he heard one.

  “I don’t know, sir!” shouted Lt. Shou. Grace Shou was an extremely competent first officer, and Devon couldn’t ignore that she was also a strikingly attractive woman. She had stunning hazel eyes, characteristically shaped like someone from the Cholan province. Her long black hair was often pulled back into a neat, militaristic style. She was slender, and in her uniform it was hard to tell much more than that. Devon had to fight hard not to observe any further.

  He often wondered if she ever held animosity over the fact that twenty years earlier their respective countries had been at war, and he was one of the heroes of that war in which she lost her father and brothers. Devon knew nothing of the circumstances behind their deaths, but had read her psych profile before they departed and knew the loss had greatly affected her life. The Sian War was bloody on both sides; he only hoped his actions during that time didn’t contribute to the death of Shou’s family. He was happy their relationship had warmed recently, which made his curiosity about the past less of an issue.

  “Damn that Larsen. He’s been taking his sweet time getting back to us. God forbid he trust someone else on the team to make a decision.”

  “Yes, sir. It would seem he likes to be hands-on.” said Shou.

  “Hands-on? Is that what you call it?” Devon snarled, as he stood up from his chair.

  “Well, sir, I’ve heard he’s been spending quite a lot of time getting his own ship ready for launch. From the news reports I’ve seen, he’s barely mentioned the Shadow or the Victory. Not to worry, Commander. I’m sure he’ll get to us sooner or later,” said Shou playfully as she smiled and walked away.

  The Victory was one of three deep space vessels commissioned almost a year after the demise of the Telos project. Three years earlier an asteroid had smashed into the larger of the two Martian moons. This was an event that was totally unexpected, and if it had hit the planet, it would have been devastating. Devon’s mission, and that of the other two ships, was to head off in a predetermined direction in order to extend their knowledge of the solar system. This included cataloging asteroids, comets, and any other objects that could become threats to the planet. The ships would be launched six months apart in order to provide for the largest possible footprint of coverage. The Victory launched first, as Devon was Larsen’s high-profile hero, and the hype kept people interested in his project. The Shadow was the second ship to launch and was commanded by Damien Windsor, another of Larsen’s close allies. Windsor was an ex-military commander and had a reputation for using questionable tactics that bordered on atrocities. He had often been at odds with Devon on strategy and methods during the war. This was exactly the type of man Larsen wanted for the S
hadow. It would have the longest duration based on its launch window, and discipline would be a vital to keeping the crew from bouncing off the walls. Larsen was going to command the final of the three ships and as of yet had not named her. There was a lot of hype over the choice of name for Devon’s vessel, and many believed it to be a tribute to its commander and his many victories in battle. Those closest to Larsen knew that he chose it to highlight his victory in seeing his dream accomplished and Will’s destroyed.

  Devon thought about his last confrontation with Will O’Neil just before the end of the Telos project. He’d been tasked with helping to present Larsen’s vision of the deep space missions to the quorum in order to secure funding. As a result, he and Will had gotten into several intense arguments in full view of the media. Will was as skilled in verbal confrontation as Devon was in military battle and had made him look foolish. Devon still held great animosity toward Will over the incident.

  “We have an object on extended range sensors, sir!” said Knarr over the sound of the alarm that sounded.

  They had encountered many small asteroids, most of which had not even been worth cataloguing. Most of the crew knew not to get excited every time the alarm went off.

  “What do we have, Mr. Knarr?” Devon’s tone was less than enthusiastic; it was almost as if he was irritated at having to leave the peaceful confines of his thoughts.

  “It appears to be an object of significant density and size and is moving at extreme velocity.”

  Devon instantly snapped to attention. This was at least something to break the monotony, which had really become a strain on the crew over the past six months. Deep space missions looked like exciting prospects until you were actually on one. There wasn’t a whole lot of action to fill the void between objects to catalogue.

  “Shall we request clearance to change course, Commander?” asked Knarr excitedly.

  “You can make the request, Mr. Knarr,” said Devon, as he leaned over Knarr’s console to see the speed of the object. “but we are damn well changing course now. At the rate that thing is moving, we don’t have time to wait for Larsen to decide what we should do.”

  Devon wasn’t used to having to run his command decisions by anyone, and this was the main source of his frustration. He’d become famous for his ability to make quick decisions on the battlefield, and these usually led to victory. This, however, was science, and there were implications to making any decision too quickly without proper forethought and study. Devon understood the difference, but he also knew the part instinct played, and he trusted his.

  Larsen looked up from his console at Manikar Control with his face red from frustration. He’d seen the course change request come through and hadn’t yet issued orders on his decision. The Victory was headed off toward this new object, and its commander had just broken protocol. He would certainly have authorized this course change, but he wanted to maintain full control of every aspect of the mission, and he needed to make the call.

  “Damn that Devon. This isn’t the Battle of Tanyan!”

  Tanyan was where Devon first showed his abilities as a leader. His commander had been killed in the midst of fighting and Devon took command, leading his men to victory. He not only won the battle but also saved his men from certain death. He had only been twenty-nine years old at Tanyan, but had risen quickly to become one of the greatest military commanders the planet’s history had ever known. Larsen chose Devon for this mission for selfish reasons—to benefit from his popularity—and he’d hoped some of that popular sentiment might rub off on him and his project. Now he was regretting his choice of captain.

  “Mr. Tercelli, inform the Victory’s commander that all course change decisions need to be evaluated carefully and a decision on any course of action will be made by this mission’s commander. Also inform him as to whom this mission’s commander is, as he appears to have forgotten!” Larsen’s tone was beyond angry; he was almost shaking as he delivered those condescending orders.

  “Sir, they appear to have observed an object at high velocity and needed to make a quick decision on—”

  “Mr. Tercelli, surely you don’t need to be reminded as to whom is commanding this mission, do you?” Larsen was angry enough at Devon for his failure to follow protocol and a subordinate was now questioning him.

  Tercelli’s shoulders sunk in embarrassment, as he had clearly forgotten who he was dealing with. “No, sir!”

  “In that case, follow my previous orders, and forward all observation data directly to my command console.”

  Tercelli almost questioned these orders, as there was an entire science team who also deserved to hear this information. He quickly caught himself and complied with Larsen’s demands. Tercelli had hoped to gain a position aboard Larsen’s ship, as he hadn’t been selected for either of the two previous missions. He’d hoped this possibility wasn’t eliminated by his defense of the Victory’s actions. He had a deep respect for Commander Devon and had looked up to him as a hero growing up, which was why he was so devastated not to be selected as a member of his crew. Larsen was probably his least favorite person, but it would be his last chance to serve aboard a deep space vessel, and he wasn’t going to miss the opportunity.

  It took two days at full thruster power for the Victory to get its first glimpse of the object and almost that long to get the angry response back from Manikar Control on the breech in protocol. Devon was less concerned with Larsen’s need to control the situation than he was with this new challenge.

  “Lieutenant Shou, full magnification on viewer. Let’s get a look at this thing.” As Shou clicked a switch on the control console to magnify the view, a large red object filled the screen. “What is that?” asked Devon, stroking his chin curiously.

  “Sir, we’re too far away to attempt any type of analysis on composition, but it exhibits the physical characteristics of a comet,” said Shou, with a hint of doubt in her voice.

  “You don’t sound certain, Shou.”

  “Well, sir, comets are typically smaller objects composed of ice and small particles, which makes them pretty consistently lighter in color. This object has a unique color, and its inner core appears to contain larger matter. The entire object has to be over one hundred miles in diameter. More like an asteroid, but I’ve never seen anything like it.”

  “One hundred miles!” shouted Knarr as he jumped up from his chair. “That would be bigger than any object we’ve ever catalogued or encountered that wasn’t a moon or planet.”

  “Mr. Knarr, begin analysis of this object as it approaches and send our findings to Manikar Control.”

  “Yes, sir,” said Knarr as he immediately returned to his station.

  “Shou, how long do we have to study this thing?” asked Devon.

  “Well, sir, at its current velocity, it will pass out of our range of analysis in three days.”

  “Three days?” barked Devon. “Not nearly enough time for something of this magnitude. What if we set course to pursue the object, just long enough to give it a thorough study?”

  “Not possible,” replied Shou in her typical analytical way. “It’s traveling too fast. We wouldn’t even come close to matching its velocity. Our observations have to take place within three days.”

  Devon leaned back in his chair pondering his options. “I want round the clock shifts set up for the next three days. I want to take full advantage of our proximity and study this thing while we can. Please see to it, lieutenant.”

  “Yes, Sir.” said Shou as she headed to the lower part of the command deck, which sat just a few steps down and contained the science and navigation stations. Knarr and Anna Trace, Senior Astrophysics Officer, shared a console on the lower deck, and sat side by side.

  “Mr. Knarr, please notify the following crew members that they will be joining you on first shift for the next three days,” said Shou as she wrote on a clipboard and handed it to him.

  “Yes, ma’am,” said Knarr standing and leaving the command deck.

>   With Knarr gone, Shou’s tone became less formal in the presence of Anna Trace. “I’ll give you one guess as to who’s on the night shift with me,” said Shou, smiling deviously.

  Trace spun her chair around to face Shou. “You know, being your friend, is sometimes a big pain in the ass, lieutenant. Night shift—really?”

  “Oh c’mon Ginger,” said Shou, using the nickname she gave Trace because of her red hair and fair complexion. She usually saved it for times like this, when she knew her orders were not going to be well received. “It’s just for three days, and you get to work with me.”

  Trace burst out laughing. “Oh, Joy. That’s worth screwing up my sleep routine for probably a week after.”

  “Laughing at a superior officer is definitely a breach of protocol,” said Shou smiling. “Seriously though, the commander’s right, we can’t afford to lose a minute at the speed that thing is traveling.”

  “I’ve noticed you two are really in synch lately—it’s good to see,” said Trace, looking curiously at Shou blushing. She and Shou had become close during their time on the Victory, and Trace knew she’d been nervous to be serving under Devon. She now wondered, based on Shou’s reaction, if there was more to her feelings for him now.

  “Better take a fifteen minute break when Knarr gets back,” said Shou changing the subject. “night shift starts in twenty.”

  The Victory’s science teams worked feverishly to gain analytical data while the object was in range. The entire first day was spent analyzing composition, structure and determination of the objects origin. The crew had done this routine many times before with the smaller objects they’d encountered.

  It was late evening the second day of observation, and Devon had decided to get some sleep in preparation for their final day studying the asteroid. The past two days had been exciting and had energized the crew with a sense of purpose. Morale was high. He had barely slept, taking full advantage of this opportunity to motivate his crew because no one knew when or if they’d come across another object of such interest.