The starchild compact, p.39
The Starchild Compact, page 39
Following tearful good-byes with those who would not see them for ten years, under their new Captain's watchful eye, the fifteen crew members filed through the great hanger door, and up the ramp into the starship. One last stop at L-4 for formal departure activities, before they undertook the first leg of their momentous journey.
#
This was Eber's first actual visit to the Mirs Complex. He was impressed. The Mirs Complex was amazingly well done, especially considering the state of Earth technology. Not that Earth technology was primitive by any means. Earth's link technology was a vast improvement over what Ectaris had developed, although the whole concept had gone down a different line aboard the Arc. In any case, Ari, Ginger, and Elke had created a link system aboard Starchild that was advanced even from Earth's point of view. Also, Eber didn't know whether his ancestors had developed a VASIMR engine, but it was pretty obvious that Earth had accomplished a lot with this propulsion technology.
Eber gazed out the window, standing next to Ginger, who had stepped close to Jon a moment earlier. Before meeting Ginger, Eber had never met a girl like her. He had quickly grasped the fluid relationships between the Cassini II crew members, and hoped fervently to spend some private time with Ginger during their wanderings. Just then, Ishtar joined them, inserting herself between Eber and Ginger, while slipping her arms around both of them. What an incredible contrast, Eber thought, between these two women. Nearly equal in height, one had almost transparent skin and long blond tresses that reached her waist, while the other was nearly blue-black with short kinky black hair. Both had startlingly green eyes that offset classical facial features, but Ishtar carried firm, full breasts, whereas Ginger sported a lithe boyish figure that required no support. As he turned to scan the remaining crew members, Eber noticed that Ginger slipped her arm around Ishtar's slender waist.
None of the four new female crew members quite met Ishtar's and Ginger's beauty standards, but then, who did? The four new women and three new men were brought aboard primarily for their special skills, scientific and otherwise, and only to a lesser extent, how they appeared – but it was a factor, because these fifteen people would very likely spend the remainder of their lives together. A comely appearance would certainly play an active role. Rod had made certain that the new crew members were comfortable in a fluid social venue, and that the women were not put off by feminine contact. Only time would tell, of course, and Eber looked forward to the interplay.
#
The time finally arrived for the departing ceremonies. Jon counted envoys gathered in the L-4 Great Room from every nation represented on the crew. Since this was genuinely an event involving all of humanity, envoys from virtually every other nation were also present. Religious representatives from most of the world's major religions had gathered as well, with the notable exception of Islam. But the Raëlians stopped the show. Jon counted fifty or so white-robed believers, and to his considerable astonishment, a dozen or so envoys similarly dressed.
Jon pointed this out to Eber. "This would never have happened before you arrived…"
"Or before you found the Arc," Eber responded.
President Marc Bowles stepped to the podium in front of the crowd. Vesta followed, and stood beside him. Their backs were to the window, which was dominated by the Starchild, silhouetted against the Milky Way, outlined by its flashing beacons.
"The human race is embarking on a great adventure," the President intoned. "I have been privileged to play a small part in setting the stage for this momentous event. But you did not come here to listen to the American President pontificate." Laughter rippled through the crowd. "So, I give you Vesta, the Founder Matriarch and President of the Iapetus Federation." The President stepped to one side, leaving the podium to Vesta. Looking impossibly young for her sixty-eight years, Vesta stepped forward. Her classical face was without wrinkles, although her golden hair showed a few streaks of gray, and her svelte body appeared to carry virtually no excess fat.
Applause filled the Great Room, but it was drowned out by cheering Raëlians. Vesta smiled graciously, and lifted her hand, requesting silence.
"Thank you, Mr. President." Vesta spoke in Founder-Speak, which was automatically translated into English and amplified into the Great Room. Those few present who did not speak English used their personal Links to get the translation. "You are all my children, and I am blessed beyond words to be standing here, speaking with you." Another round of applause. "Fifteen of you are departing on a journey that will last ten years for those of us who stay behind. Two of my grandsons, Eber and Arpachshad, and two of my granddaughters by marriage, Ishtar and Rasu'eja, accompany you. Four of you I know well and have come to love, Ari Rawlston, my direct descendant, Captain Jon Stock, Ginger Steele, and Elke Gratz – I will miss you! And to you seven, new to the crew, but already part of our wonderful family, I raise my hand in salute to your courage, to your fortitude, to your sense of adventure, and yes, to your daring-do! Your names will join those of the others whom I have already named in the permanent annals of humanity." Applause, lasting several minutes followed this comment.
"We will meet again right here in ten years," Vesta continued. "At that time we will review our procedures to make any necessary changes, so that Starchild's next rendezvous with our great-great grandchildren will be without a hitch. So, join me in wishing my children fair winds and following seas, and a safe harbor on their return."
#
What happened next was anticlimactic. Jon and his crew shuttled from the Mirs Ring to Starchild, and boarded without incident. Since everything in Starchild accelerated at the same rate as the starship itself, just as in Merkavah, the crew needed take no special precautions prior to launch.
Rod stood with Vesta watching the shuttle arrive at the starship, and then depart. Five minutes later, Starchild vanished.
#
High above the Ecliptic, the Resident brought Starchild to a stop. Then, on a prearranged vector along which there lay no stars, the Resident activated the hyper-V system for just under two subjective hours, halting once again for a few quick minutes to scan the empty region that lay five light years distant from the Sun. As they had expected, there was nothing to see, and at only five light years distant from the Solar System, even the background stars appeared the same as from Earth. Once again, the Resident activated the hyper-V. When Starchild came to a halt high above the Solar System Ecliptic nearly two subjective hours later, ten years had passed on Earth and the Iapetus Federation.
#
After the Starchild vanished so abruptly, Vesta returned to Iapetus with her delegation aboard Merkavah, and Rod returned to Earth in his capacity as Ambassador of the Iapetus Federation. Generally speaking, the political climate on Earth had remained relatively stable since the demise of the Persian Caliphate. True to his word, General Suleiman dismantled the Caliphate governmental apparatus, disbanded the Caliphate army, and generally allowed the individual states that had been incorporated into the Caliphate to go their separate ways.
Rod followed this activity with interest. Although he was personally involved in the overthrow of the Caliphate, he was suspicious of the reports coming out of the former police state. He could not personally see a general with Sulieman's importance simply giving up and going away. Rod retained his friendship with the American President. On a visit with the President where they discussed Iapetus Federation affairs and the possibility that the Mirs Corporation would move L-4 into the Federation, the President informed him that American and Israeli intelligence had uncovered a shadow government possibly controlled by Suleiman. The President wanted the Federation to use its resources to ferret out any possible weapons caches.
Several months following the Starchild's departure, the Mirs Corporation that headed up the Russian consortium builders of the Mirs Complex petitioned the Iapetus Federation for membership. A few weeks later, the Lunar Complex followed suit. The Federation was unwilling to license the hyper-V technology. The Federation did build and lease a half-dozen ships capable of very rapid interplanetary travel, but lacking interstellar capability or the ability to travel through the Earth's atmosphere. That was an arrangement negotiated by Rod to ensure the continued viability of LLI and Galactic Ventures. Soon enough, the Launch Loop and the rocket would go the way of the buggy whip and wooden wheel spokes, but for now hyper-V flight was restricted to exoatmospheric ventures.
By the third year, an independent consortium headed by LLI placed the first permanent settlement on Mars, using craft especially modified by the Federation to move through the rarified Mars atmosphere. The Mars colony was immediately admitted into the Federation. This opened the doors to a rash of migration to the asteroid belt and several of the moons of Jupiter. Year five saw humans looking at the moons of Saturn and Jupiter for industrialization and settlement. By the middle of year six, several million people were scattered across the Solar System, linked together by their membership in the Iapetus Federation, and by the high-speed spacecraft the Federation supplied. The Mars colony constructed a massive Launch Loop in the eighth year, capable of handling tens of thousands of passengers daily, and millions of kilos of goods. By the middle of year nine, the Mars population passed the ten million mark, and there was serious talk of terraforming the planet.
And everywhere, the Raëlians dominated matters of faith.
#
On the designated day, delegations from all over the Solar System crowded into the newly expanded Great Room in the old Mirs Ring. Outside the grand expanse of transparent polymer, two additional slowly rotating ring complexes were visible. On a normal day, the lights of moving spacecraft could be seen virtually everywhere as spacecraft moved into and out of docks, transited to Earth orbit, and set course for Mars and the outer planets. On this day, however, at this time, nothing moved.
Rod Zakes and his entourage had arrived a day earlier, not as the Federation Ambassador to Earth but as the Federation President. Vesta had finally retired and moved Earthside to a plantation in the American State of Georgia, but she made the trip to L-4 just for the event. Michele showed up, but this time as the real First Lady of France, as she had married France's new President. Carmen was there, now part of the still active Indian Prime Minister's Cabinet, as Minister of Health. Noel arrived in his personal Founder spacecraft. He brought Chen, who had retired to private life, with him. Demitri, now also fully retired, arrived in full dress uniform with a lovely Ukrainian lass on each arm. Unfortunately, Aram had disappeared during an avalanche in the Swiss Alps while skiing, but his brother, Asshur, hitched a ride with Noel. Lud and Shakbah had taken up residence in Mirs Three, the third torus constructed at the Mirs Complex, and showed up in their personal shuttle.
The new American President came from a different political persuasion than his predecessor, and had only a tepid interest in the Starchild's return. He sent a low-ranking delegation; but the former two-term President, Marc Bowles, was there, and received nearly as much holo coverage as his friend Rod. Scattered throughout the assembled delegations, white-robed Raëlians carried welcome banners and chanted prayers for the safe return of the space travelers.
At the appointed time, Federation President Zakes moved to the platform in front of the great window, motioned for Marc Bowles, the former American President, to join him, and they turned to peer outward. One moment the open space defined by the three ring complexes was empty; the next, the Starchild floated in serene silence 300 meters away from the window, outlined by her flashing beacons.
#
Hours later, after the Champaign toasts, after the formal speeches, after the tearful reunions, Rod sat down with his former Mars Expedition mate, and his friends, Ari, Eber, and Marc Bowles. He briefed them on the state of affairs on and off Earth. The returning space travelers reacted with surprise at the rapid expansion into space during their absence. They were appalled at the stance the world had taken to the emerging threat of General Sulieman's growing empire.
"Why hasn't American or the Federation stopped him?" Jon asked.
"It isn't that simple anymore," Rod answered, and nodded to Marc.
"When I left office and my successor took over, many things changed. America turned inward, and has practically given up its world leadership position. Interestingly the vacuum has been partially filled by the Iapetus Federation. My friend Rod, here, is a bit reluctant to take the bull by the horns, and do something about the emerging threat. It has to do, I guess, with the underlying principles upon which the Federation was founded."
"You mean like the American Constitution," Rod asked quietly.
"If Suleiman gets his hands on Founder technology, we're in for some tough going," the former president said. "It's not your problem, of course, but we wanted you to know."
"How long are you staying?" Rod asked.
"About a month," Jon answered as he accepted a wet kiss from Michele, who had just danced over to their little group.
#
The month was crammed with activities for each crew member. Rod had set things up so that the crew received maximum exposure in order to increase the odds that the Starchild would be remembered 184 years hence. Eighteen-hour days were the norm for everyone, and Jon had little private time with Rod. In one of the rare moments, he asked Rod about the state of advancement of Earth technology.
"We're learning a lot," Rod said. "Most of Ectarian science is not well understood even by the Founders who have remained behind. We are making genuine strides, however. I think we will have made some significant breakthroughs by the time you return again. Sorry I won't be here to greet you, but I promise that you will not be forgotten. We have taken every step we can imagine to ensure that your return will be anticipated, and that you will be welcomed.
Jon was not so confident, but he kept his thoughts to himself.
#
The month was over too quickly. When the departure day arrived, the Great Room in the old Mirs Ring was full to capacity. Around the world, people stopped what they were doing to participate vicariously through the worldwide holovision networks. There still was a general misunderstanding about what was about to happen, although the holovision talking heads did their best to explain the matter.
"Ten years ago," one aging popular science fiction author explained to his pretty blond host, "Starchild headed into interstellar space on a vector – in a direction – where there were no known close stars. The Starchild's velocity was ninety-nine-point-nine-nine-nine-nine-nine-nine-nine – that is ninety-nine-point followed by six nines – percent of the speed of light. The nature of their hyper-vee drive is such that it operates on everything in its field, the starship, the air inside the starship, the people, the cargo – everything. Consequently, they didn't have to ramp up to their final speed like a normal rocket would, or like the VASIMR propulsion system of the Cassini II did, one moment they were not moving, the next they were at their final velocity.
"According to the clocks inside the Starchild, they traveled in this direction for just under two hours – the actual time under hyper-vee was exactly one hour, fifty-seven minutes, thirty-one point six-six-four seconds. Then they stopped, looked around for a while – several hours, probably, and then they came back, again traveling at nearly light speed, another two-hour trip for them, subjectively. Because of the way relativistic travel works, for us back here, ten years passed between the time they left and when they returned. They actually traveled five light years away from our Solar System in those two hours of their time.
"So, when they returned a month ago, from their point of view, they had been gone for only four hours plus whatever time they spent out there looking around, while for us, ten years had passed."
"Oh my! I was still in high school," his host giggled. "It's like a miracle."
"More like physics," the writer responded with a smile.
The holovision signals were being beamed to the Iapetus Federation members scattered throughout the Solar System, but by the time most of them would receive the holocast, the star voyagers would have long been gone.
Rod set the tone for the farewell speeches by keeping his to less than two minutes. As a result, several of the delegates discarded their prepared remarks, reverting to short improvised comments that would be remembered long after their longer presentations would have been forgotten.
The original Cassini II crew gathered for final farewells. The members who had remained behind appeared visibly older than their starfaring shipmates. That did not seem to matter, however. Those remaining behind promised to keep the memory of their friends alive in their children and grandchildren, for as long as they were away.
Marc Bowles had immigrated to the Federation and was now the President of the Starchild Institute. At one point, he had expressed an interest in joining the Starchild crew, but his family prevailed upon him to stay behind, and he agreed to do so on the condition that they all join him on Iapetus. Marc promised his best efforts to ensure that the Starchild Institute remained a shining beacon that would continue to jumpstart Earth technology and to keep alive the living memory of the Starchild and her courageous crew.
Finally, clad in blue jumpsuits designed by the Starchild Institute, standing before the L-4 Great Room window with the Starchild hanging in the background, the fifteen starfarers waved to the assembled delegates and filed into the open airlock near the Great Room entrance. Moments later they entered the shuttle and zipped across the distance to the waiting starship.
The Resident reported a tight ship. Jon took one final headcount, and activated the controls that took Starchild high above the Ecliptic. "One last look," he said to the assembled crew, pointing to the display panels that showed the Solar System below them with the planetary orbits superimposed on the images. After several minutes Jon looked at Eber and nodded. Together they activated the hyper-V drive.
Epilog
Saeed Esmail gazed out over more than a thousand camouflaged tents pitched in a dry lake bed near the center of Rub' al-Khali in the Saudi Arabian desert. The lakebed was surrounded by shifting dunes, some towering nearly thirty meters. The early morning temperature was about ten degrees Celsius, but would reach nearly fifty by mid-afternoon. The Cassini II crew would not have recognized Saeed in his sackcloth robe and full-length flowing beard. Above him fluttered a light blue flag displaying a severed fist holding a dagger. A few centimeters from the wrist, the truncated arm flowed red blood. Outside every tent, two men stood at relaxed attention.
