A Space Story or The Starship, The Alien and The Dream
By Daniel McCullough
PART 1: DAEDLUS or The Starship, The Natural and The Judgment
Starships did not need to be pretty, they did not need to be aerodynamic and they did not need to have wings. All a starship really needed to move through outer space was the right propulsion system and good architectural symmetry. That was all the starship Daedlus needed. But like many other before it had been decided that the Daedlus should not only have wings and an aerodynamic shape, but overall it should be a very pretty looking ship.
Janessa Kepshawn had seen pictures of the starship Daedlus, everyone had seen pictures, but now she was seeing with her own eyes. It reminded her of a hawk. The bow was like a beak. The body of the ship was long and sleek with the wings at the back that made it look like it was ready to soar across the sky. Starships did not actually need wings but they claimed the Daedlus was capable of atmospheric entry and flight. Janessa wondered how they had figured that out. The ship had been constructed in space in secret supposedly because the revolutionary materials used to build it would have made it too massive to escape the Earth’s gravitational pull. To anyone who questioned this they claimed it was something about the ships revolutionary new propulsion system that it was not safe to turn on the engines in an atmosphere.
The ship was painted white and silver. There was a yellow circle painted on both sides of the ship with four yellow triangles around it, the symbol of the International Earth Solar Fleet. And also on either side painted in black letters the ship’s name, Daedlus.
Janessa Kepshawn had long red hair. Her eyes were bright blue and her skin was pale. Some people would say she was pretty, most others would say she was much more than that.
Janessa had never been one to be taken in by hype, and there had been plenty of hype around the Daedlus lately. It was always photographed at angles that made it look like it was the noblest of things. Now that she was drawing closer to it through the transport tube Janessa saw that the ship indeed gave off an aura of… what was it, nobility, strength, maybe hope was the right word. The ship was like a loyal bird of prey ready to strike at the enemies of Earth and lead us all to victory. Tania had been right all along.
Janessa remembered her conversation with Tania. It had only been what, five years ago? Was that all? They had been on their off time relaxing by the side of little man made lake on the campus grounds. They were talking about the war, about the Spectral Horde. And Janessa had said without thinking, “If we lose the war, what is the last thing you want to do before the Spectral Horde descends upon the Earth?”
“Never going to happen,” Tania replied.
Janessa said it was just a hypothetical question, just a joke. Clearly Tania did not think it was funny. The conversation quickly got serious. In the back of her mind, in the back of everyone’s mind, the question was there. When she was alone, in the dark, Janessa would sometimes be overwhelmed with anxiety, what if we lose? It quickly became clear that Tania did not share that fear. There was no doubt in her mind that humanity would endure.
“But how can you be so sure?” Janessa had asked, “I know the world powers are all working on super soldiers and new weapons, but what if they don’t find something in time. What if the Horde gets to Earth before we find a way to stop them?”
“Someone will find a way,” said Tania.
“You sound so sure of that,” said Janessa, “Don’t you get scared?”
“Of course I get scared, but I refuse to believe that God would make us and make this world and let it just end like that.”
“You think god is going to save us?”
“Of course not, the hand of God is not going to reach down and sweep away the Spectral Horde. I believe that God gave us the minds and the brilliance to come up with the science and the technology to survive.”
“So we should wait for someone to come up with the answer to save the world?”
“Oh come on now Nessa. We’re pilots. I don’t know about anyone else but I am going to shoot down as many horde fighters and punch as many holes in horde cruisers as I can to buy some scientist on Earth the time needed to find a way to beat the Horde once and for all. And those scientists better come up with something because after the war is over I intend to be the biggest war hero the world has ever known because I am going to be the greatest Solar Fleet fighter pilot in the history of the universe.”
And Tania smiled that great big friendly welcoming smile of hers.
There was plenty of the ship to explore and the only area that was off limits was the engine room. Janessa saw other people in the halls. Some were moving the last of the ships supplies in and others were just roaming. There was a steady flow going towards the ‘head’ of the ship. There was a large common area there. There was a glass dome above that let everyone see the stars. From the current orbit Earth was not in view but the moon would be before long. Many people had come to the common area. It was white with benches and potted plants. A few trees and shrubs and a few vine plants dangling over the edges of hanging baskets. The people gathered made an interesting collage of colors. Almost everyone was wearing something out of the official ships wardrobe. Janessa’s top was red indicating she was a pilot. The ship staff wore black. Other military personnel wore green. Science and intelligence officers wore yellow. The command crew wore white.
Most of the crew members gathered was dressed in the ‘casual’ wear provided or some combination with their own clothing.
“Everybody’s gathering to watch the show.”
“I’m sorry what?” replied Janessa.
It took a moment for Janessa to realize that the woman had not been talking to her but to her own self. Janessa guessed she was of Middle Eastern descent. She had long black hair and a pretty face with a prominent nose. She was the only person in the common hall not wearing any of the issued wardrobes. She was wearing a black t-shirt knotted to the side with the words “Dokken hates chicken” on it. She turned to Janessa and smiled a big friendly welcoming smile. For a moment Janessa felt like she was looking at Tania. The woman held out her hand.
“Hey there,” she said, “I’m Junitha Findragon. Nice to meet a fellow pilot.”
Janessa reached out and shook Junitha’s hand. For a second when Junitha squeezed her hand Janessa was sure she saw the woman’s eyes turn bloodshot red. But it must have been a trick of the light because her eyes were plain old brown when she looked again.
“I bet I know who you are,” said Junitha, “you’re the natural pilot.”
Oh crap here it comes, was the first thing Janessa thought. She had been through this enough times to know what was going to be said next and what would happen. Either this woman would start asking about political views or something about how gene mods made everyone’s life better.
“I heard there was going to be a natural pilot on the prime squad,” said Junitha, “I’m in prime squad too. I look forward to getting to know you better.”
Janessa was surprised, stunned even. No questions about her parents or comments about how enhanciles were so much better than naturally born humans.
“You mean you don’t know who I am?” asked Janessa.
“Well no since you haven’t told me your name yet.”
“Oh right sorry, I’m Janessa Kepshawn. My parents are Darryl and Vicki Kepshawn.”
She added her parent’s names to see if that stirred any reaction. The only reaction was that Junitha thought it was a bit odd for Janessa to go out of her way to mention her parents’ names.
“Good to meet you Janessa,” said Junitha, “You ready to watch the show?”
“What show?”
“You don’t know why half the ship is gathered up here do you?”
“I just came up because I wanted to see what the dome looked like from the inside. Then I saw everyone else coming up here too. I wanted to ask someone, and since you’re the only one here wearing your own clothes, you’ve seen what they issued us right?”
“Yeah I went through the package when I got on board,” said Junitha, “None of it really suited my taste.”
“I know what you mean,” said Janessa, “I mean it wasn’t all totally terrible but what are they doing outfitting us for war or a dance music video.”
“I like the way you think,” said Junitha, “you and I are going to get along. But the reasons for the outfits are pretty obvious, just look around you. We are surrounded by attractive young people who are the saviors of humanity. What I’m saying is at some point someone decided that this mission to save the world needed to be more marketable, and there’s nothing more marketable than sex.”
“That sounds ridiculous,” said Janessa.
“It is ridiculous,” said Junitha, “But that’s what someone decided and now we each have our own profile page on the data-streams.”
“I don’t remember agreeing to that.”
“Everyone agrees to it when they sign up with the Solar Fleet. Remember before it was the fighting force it is against the Spectral Horde it was a corporate entity and a lot of its executives still think that way. But the show starts any minute now. The command crew and the super soldiers are doing this pre-flight launch photo shoot and interview thing. I think everybody came up here on the off chance they might get to be in one of the photos. Almost everyone thinks this mission is going to turn them into celebrity back on Earth. Some of them already think they are. But I guess that’s the way people are. In some countries anyway. Am I talking too much? Sometimes I start talking and I forget to stop. Hey here they come now let’s get a closer look.”
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