Teela of Kolander, page 26
“You know we'll be able to get into any university in the United States or the world. We're famous ... what are you thinking about?”
“Well, first college and then career and what ... I don't know. Actually, I'm having second thoughts.”
“About what? College? Astrophysics?”
“Yes and no ... sort of.” Mary said, shrugging. “I know what I want to study but I've been thinking that I probably could actually study it better out there and not here in an Earth School.”
“True,” Teela said. “but mother wanted us here to help monitor Earth while we did the school thing. And there are things here that we could study too. Like, why do we all look alike.”
“I know. The world is comprised of so many layers of complexity, all hidden by the one on the top that we see.”
“Wow, so philosophical. But we know about several of those layers, We just graduated, lets just relax, choose colleges and think about it more during the summer.”
Teela's Timex shaped stealth communications device tingled her wrist and she glanced at it. The hands were moving back and forth between the numbers in a pattern, a code, she recognized. She showed it to Mary and thought “An alert. We need to call the ship.”
Mary nodded and ran the few steps to the porch and set the basket down “Teela, we forgot mother's favorite container. We'd better go get it.” She turned around and headed back toward the tree house. Teela followed.
Once inside, Teela switched her Timex to stealth communicator, setting it to speaker mode, and called the Barkol ship. “I got an alert to call you. What's up?”
“Hi, Teela. Are we on speaker? This is for Mary as well?” The captain's voice said.
“Yes,” Mary said. “I'm here too.”
“Good.”
During the short pause, Teela looked at Mary and shrugged. “So mysterious.”
“We have received a message from the Empress.” The Captain's voice seemed excited. “She need's both of you back on Bardonis, at least temporarily, to help with a scientific and political problem. They have just discovered a new species of sentient beings on a planet that needs investigating and monitoring. They will potentially need protection or membership.”
Teela frowned. “Did she say why us? We've just finished high school ... not really trained scientists or politicians.”
The captain chuckled lightly. “Her Majesty's message said you would probably question the request. Two reasons were given. One, your mother, the Empress asked it, and two, the inhabitants look just like us except they have one navel like Earthlings and Kolanderans. The Empress has extended an invitation to the Harrelsons as well, if they would like to come.”
“If it's just for genetic research. Why the rush?” Mary asked frowning.
“Well, so much for college on Earth.” Teela said. “But what about Immigration and the FBI?”
“We have already sent a message to the US president and also to the Harrelsons.”
“When do we go?”
“The ship is descending toward your yard as we speak.”
Teela frowned. “What? No time to pack. That's awfully sudden for a regular scientific mission.”
There was a long pause before the Captain answered her question. “There is another matter. Her Majesty has changed her mind about the secret monitoring mission on Earth, deciding to make it an official embassy on Earth instead. She felt it best and has already alerted the US President of your and Mary's official status in the Empire. She will be speaking with the United Nations within the next two weeks, Earth time. The President felt that you two should not remain on Earth, hidden in small town Florida, considering the embarrassment your masquerade caused the FBI.”
Teela looked at Mary, her thoughts a jumble of conflicting emotions and ideas. “So, the newly discovered planet was just to make us feel better about our cover being blown?”
“No. That is all real. Hurry to the house. the ship is landing.”
They rushed back to the house, arriving just as the Barkolian ship landed. The FBI was already present and talking to the Harrelsons on the wide porch. The FBI agents' expressions ranged from simply serious to visibly unhappy. Mama H grabbed both girls into a giant hug after they mounted the steps.
“I'm so glad the truth is finally out. All this acting was getting old,” She said as she held the girls tightly.
Papa H hugged them all. “But, we will not be going with you. Our life is here. We are glad you will be continue your studies, abroad ... way abroad.” His voice was full of grief. Then he released them and smiled. “Your world is so much bigger than anyone knows. I knew, when you came back, that you would not be able to stay too long and we understand.”
“Please come. Grow trees on Kolander,” Mary said through her tears.
“Your mother said she would help us and keep us informed about your exploits. We will even communicate ever so often.”
Teela smiled through her own tears. She removed her Timex and gave it to Papa H. “Use this. I don't want anything to happen to you. You guys were the first real family I had since I was tiny.”
Mary took off her Timex to give to Mama H but Papa H held up his wrist. “They have already given us two. Keep yours. You'll need them.”
Teela and Mary boarded the landing ship. Leaving this time was different. The excitement of a new planet and species of human being on one side but sorrow for leaving the Harrelsons and the easy, low key life of an Earthly teenager. What was waiting for them? What new knowledge? What new adventures? The universe had certainly become so much bigger for each of them. They watched the Earth shrink in the portal and Mary smiled. “Mother will help the Earth. So, what now, Your Exalted Majesty, Princess of the Realm?”
“Oh, shut up, Your Exalted Majesty, Princess of the Realm.”
Laughter filled the cabin instead of silence, this time.
END
Appendixes
-The Barkol Empire-
Seven thousand years ago, the planet Bardeenis in the Bardon star system was home to a primitive but highly intelligent species of human being. They developed a highly technological civilization that spanned many cultures, languages, and countries. By six thousand years ago they had nearly unified the planet into one culture and language and had colonized their nearest planetary neighbor, Bardonis. It was rich in natural resources, had no indigenous intelligent life forms, and could be reached by less than a year's space travel once every three years when the planet's orbits were closest.
Eight hundred years later, Bardonis had become independent of Bardeenis and fully occupied. After the initially difficult period following a war of independence, they developed a good working relationship, with only a few minor territorial issues over a few large asteroids between the planets.
Five thousand, two hundred, and four years ago, both planets were attacked simultaneously by a previously unknown humanoid species. This was the first time in our history that proof of life other than on Bardeenis had been found. Without initial contact of any kind, the aliens used high energy weapons to depopulate whole regions of each planet and set up mining operations for metals. They never made any attempts to communicate, just killed, landed, and mined. After many years of fighting, the aliens withdrew, leaving only a cryptic message, written in our own language, “We are Wadogon. We grant you these planets until we return. Beware!”
The years of war had decimated the populations and nearly destroyed the civilizations of both planets. They were left with three things, a fanatical desire to develop the capacity to protect themselves from another attack, several pieces of the Wadogon's battle and mining equipment, and a ship with faster-than-light technology.
Both planets worked together to understand and improve on the captured FTL technology and during that process decided to establish an Empire with shared resources and a single ruling government, that could respond quickly and aggressively to any threat. Thus, seven years of conflict and two years of recovery later, the early empire was created on Bardeenis, five thousand, two hundred, and thirteen years ago. It included both planets of the Bardon system, the only known inhabited planets at that time, and was called the Bardon Empire after its star system.
After almost 500 more years of development, the Emperor moved the Imperial palace to Bardonis, establishing it as the home of the Empire. The royal family, however, often returned to Bardeenis for wives or husbands and Bardeenis continues to be considered, even now, the home of the Royal family's bloodlines and as well as the home for many with royal relationships.
By the time the Empire's capital had been moved to Bardonis, they had fully understood the Wadogon's FTL technology and began to build their own versions. Exploration with these new ships, began to find inhabitable planets with many desirable and needed resources. But some of the planets were already inhabited by humans identical to the people of the Empire.
The academics began to study how these identical populations on unrelated planets could be possible. The Empire's rulers, however, saw these planets as resources to better defend themselves and began adding them to its regime. Sometimes they used promises of protection and access to great resources and sometimes they used military might. The Empire's expansionist philosophy eventually resulted in the current Empire; Five star systems with twelve planets.
Bardeenis and Bardonis were first, followed five hundred years later by two populated planets of the Doron system, Doreenis and Doronis. Their populations were genetically identical to the Empire's citizens, including dual placentas and navels. A hundred years later, Dorusis, the third planet of the Doron system was annexed. It was unpopulated at that time but rich in natural resources.
The above five planets, all, no more than one day FTL away, became known as the Central Region, when the outer planets began to be added into the Empire. The new additions became known as the Border Region. All of those planets were at least two and a half days of FTL travel away from Bardonis.
It took another eleven hundred years to find the next viable planet. In the Polgon system, the planet Polgeenis and its sister planet, Polgonis were brought into the Empire. Polgonis was populated with a pre-technological civilization, also genetically compatible with dual navels. They fought briefly before surrendering. Polgeenis was unpopulated.
The Empire flourished for another two and a half thousand years before finding another populated planet. During that period they did annex and colonize the planet, Mardonis of the Mardon system, unpopulated and rich in water. Then, twelve hundred years ago, the Empire found the Kolon system, home of two populated planets. They quickly brought Kolonis into the Empire, as it had not developed space flight and its military were no match for the advanced weapons of the Empire. The second planet, called Koleenis by the Empire, took two hundred years and the loss of millions of lives to conquer. The Empire was forced to allow one group of resisters to exist outside the Empire but totally confined within their own borders, Ander.
In addition to providing for the independence of Ander within their border, the Empire was forced to rename the planet Kolander after the two nations that had fought them, Kol, and Ander.
In celebration of the annexation of Kolander, one of the richest planets in natural and technological resources, the Empire renamed itself, the Barkol Empire.
-Intelligent Alien Species:
Mythological and Historical-
The oldest stories of intelligent alien species are unsubstantiated myth, but assumed true by many. These myths about highly intelligent aliens in great flying ships who have visited and given great gifts of knowledge can be found on each of the planets with native populations. The various names across the planets for these beings universally translates to 'the ancients' or 'the ancient ones' regardless of the language or planet. The myths talk of them traversing the great depths of space even before the current citizens of the Empire had adopted the wearing of animal skins and began squatting in caves.
The Ancients are often credited with having gifted the various cultures on the planets with the science and math concepts needed to build advanced structures, plot the heavens, and create calendars accurate for millennia, all seemingly well beyond their simple cultures. Some myths include the Ancients in their myths of origin. It is assumed that they traveled widely across the galaxy as nomads, but there have been no stories of them more recently than twenty-five thousand years ago.
A second species of intelligent aliens were first encountered just over five thousand years ago on the planets of Bardeenis and Bardonis. They are humanoid and known as the Wadogons. They were highly intelligent with advanced technology and faster than light engines. They have humanoid form except for their faces, hands, and feet. Their faces are dominated by very large eyes and a annular mouth, ringed with small tentacles. Their hands had three short, supple tentacles instead of bony digits and their feet were generally shaped like human feet but without toes. They used vocal communication but the sounds could not be reproduced by the human vocal tract.
During the seven years of armed conflict with these aliens, the planets of Bardeenis and Bardonis were able to build a sizable database of their characteristics, both biological and cultural. Examining the ancient stories of the various other planets of the Empire revealed that the Wadogons had been ravaging the resources of planets and moons almost as long as the Ancients were also known. During the past five thousand years, there have been many small skirmishes between the Empire and the Wadogons, resulting in loss of life but no changes in territory. We do not know their home world or even the quadrant of the galaxy from which they originated.
About three thousand years ago a third advanced, intelligent alien was discovered, the Gorgusans. They are also even less humanoid, with functional wings, and a wide mouth full of pointed teeth. They are a highly aggressive, and highly intelligent species who claim to be the only legitimate descendants of the Ancients. Their expressed mission of existence is to clear all humans from this part of the galaxy because it belongs to them and they do not negotiate.
The Empire had tried to annex their home planet by force and was defeated. It was the only known defeat in the Empire's history. Now they know we exist, and have developed the own FTL travel, they have been attacking random ships and military outposts. They will become an even greater threat as time passes.
One special case of a possible alien species exists on Kolander. All peoples of the Empire, until Kolander was annexed, had two navels and two placentas. The native inhabitants there have one placenta and navel. Other than that difference, they are genetically compatible. This difference, though, is enough to create questions. At least one group of people there, those from the nation of Ander were using FTL travel at least twenty-five thousand years ago. Ander's sister nation Kol, was not as advanced, even though their history is nearly as old, and the had two navels like the rest of the known universe. Much research is still needed in that area.
As advanced and old as the nation of Ander was, they also had myths about the Ancients. Even there, though, the ancients exist only as myth and were never encountered in all of Ander's travels. They did already know of the Wadogons and the Gorgusans.
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F. Hampton Carmine
About The Author
Hampton Carmine has been writing stories since high school in the early sixties when he completed three sci/fi novels that still exist in red ink on pulp pencil tablets, kept as instruments of humility.
He was born in the small college town of Oakland City, Indiana where his dad was in music school. His youth was spent in the mid-west but he went to college in North Carolina at East Carolina University achieving a degree in Psychology and advanced degrees in Speech and Language Pathology and Special Education. This was followed later by a degree in Computer Science, a career in state service and retirement to help raise a first grandchild.
He continues to write Fantasy and Sci/Fi as well as compose music for band and orchestra while living in Raleigh, NC.
Also by F. Hampton Carmine
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Abby and the Magic Key
Rebecca Hornsby, Elf Princess
Destiny’s Handmaiden
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It's For Your Own Good
Man - Machine: A Journey, Three Short Stories
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The Seer, Destiny's Guardian
A Matter of Faith
The Burning Bush Redux
Ghost Story
The Gluon Amplifier
Throwback
Written in Her Flesh
A Gift of Butterflies
He Who Saves a Single Life, Saves ... World Entire
A Matter of Perspective
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Standoff at Europa
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F. Hampton Carmine, Teela of Kolander
