THIS IS A SCI-FI
STORY THAT IS NOT RELATED TO STAR WARS OR STAR TREK. IT IS ENGLISH COURSEWORK
THAT GOT AN A. ENJOY!
The United Spirit
It is the year 2600. The planet Earth nears a stage where it
cannot handle any more people. The President of the
But only a fraction of the ships are used to hold these. The other 90% of the ship is the largest living quarters ever created by mankind – the Ultra Cities. These can hold up to 2 billion people; meaning these ships were enormous. The names of these ships were The State Explorer, The Earthotopia, The Yearning Jump, The American Beauty and The United Spirit.
It is now
the year 2630. You may be wondering who I am, if you ever knew at the beginning
that I even existed. It is most likely that you didn’t, so I’ll introduce
myself. Tim Harnett is my name. I used to live in the
The United
Spirit’s
As a ship officer, I have a rank. If you ever worked on the Navy, then you know the kind of ranks that we have on this ship. I am a Lieutenant JG, (which means I am training to be a Lieutenant).
Anyway, now you know me. You know I exist, so I better get on and tell you the first encounter with the unknown we had. For that’s why you’re reading, isn’t it?
It was the 3rd day of the 31st week (which we date as 3/31/00 – there are 10 days in a week, 100 weeks in a year, and then it gets usual to the Earth-time format from then on). I was on my way to an important call to the discussion table. Here, we would discuss matters about the dangerous objects we might face, or the planets we would find.
I walked down the velvet floor of the control bunker, and stared at my reflection in the mirror opposite me; my brown curly hair, my black eyes (both artificial – due to two eye sockets with no eyes at birth, which was a great shock for my parents), and my blue officers suit.
I arrived in front of the mirror and touched it once with my finger. It buzzed.
“Total Control”, I spoke softly, which formed the mirror into a screen. On the screen was an outline of a hand. I put my hand on top of it, and quickly, the computer scanned it.
“Tim Harnett has arrived”, a computerised voice spoke to everyone inside, as the door swung open. I walked in and took my seat at the table. I was not alone.
You know
me. I’ve said that before. But you don’t know my fellow officers in charge of
this ship – and some that are in charge of me. So I shall introduce them to
you, tell you what rank they are, tell you what job they do and tell you what
nationality they are. You may now be asking what nationality I am. If you are,
then you missed something. I come from the
Anyway, the officers seated around the table next to and opposite me are Captain Natalie Julliard (who is in command of this ship and is a British officer), Commander Kevin Harron (the first officer – also British), Commander Harry Jackel (in charge of citizen welfare – basically the President of the Citizens – obviously an American), Lieutenant Commander James Goodard (Chief Scientist – also an American), Lieutenant Gordon Kite (Security Officer – a British Officer), Lieutenant Morgan Hughes (Tactical Officer – an American) and Lieutenant Commander Harrengo Majengo (Chief Engineer – a Chinese looking man in his late 30s).
“All seated, we may begin”, starts Captain Julliard in a stately manner, which was unlike her – she must be nervous. “May I ask Lieutenant Commander James Goodard to step forward and explain this mission”, continued the Captain, and then she sat down and wiped her brow. The Science Officer rose to his feet and marched over to the 20in screen.
“We are approaching our first ever unknown phenomenon”, he started in his rough voice, no sign of nervousness here, “we expect to arrive within visual range in under 3 hours. However, long distance sensor sweeps have picked up information that the phenomenon is like a nebula and is enormous; it covers a small planet. We think it is harmless, but some places on it are so dense, we can’t actually see what it is. I suggest that we wait until we are within visual range before we make any obligations.”
“I object”, states Lieutenant Morgan Hughes, the tactical officer, standing up and banging his fist on the table. He had broad shoulders, and muscles everywhere – really hunky. “I think we should try and destroy this thing before it poses a threat”.
“Haven’t you been listening?” the Captain pouted, “The phenomenon is a nebula. A space cloud! We cannot destroy it!”
“Oh”, mutters the Lieutenant, sitting down again, “sorry”.
The Captain looks sternly around the table and then at me.
“Lieutenant Harett, what speed are we travelling at?”
“150 million”.
“Increase speed to max. Lieutenant Commander Goodard”, she ordered, looking at him, “Tell us at once when we are in visual range. Dismissed”.
* * * * *
Ok, so when I’ve been just staring at space for a couple of hours, my job does get slightly boring. I mean, it’s like being a taxi driver and just watching the cars go by as your taxi drives itself down the road having you told it where to go, and yet there is no one there. It gets boring! I mean, really boring. So, so, so, so, so-
“Captain, we are in visual range”, literally shouts Mr Goodard, bringing me back to life on the bridge.
“On Screen”, says Captain Julliard croakily, standing up. Everyone faces the space, waiting for it to come to life. It does – and what we see is magnificent. It is like a giant blue cloud, which has been turned a dark blue in some places. It seems to pulse, and there are green dots running through it. The planet is visible also, a red planet. Not sure if it is colonized, though…
“Captain, sensors show that the planet has got considerably smaller than last time and that the phenomenon is a living creature,” states Mr Goodard.
Good God! A living creature in space! Not possible!
“Therefore, it is not a space cloud, and we could destroy it!” basically yelled Lieutenant Hughes, the tactical officer, interrupting my thoughts.
“Mr Hughes control yourself”, said the Captain sternly. Then she turned to the science officer and spoke in a calmer voice, “Mr Goodard, what is happening to that planet?”
“The planet has an atmosphere and can support living life. The creature is using it for it’s respiratory needs, slowly reducing the planet in size as it sucks it up and uses the nutrition.”
A few seconds silence pursued this.
“Mr Harnett, take us in. Let’s see if it takes us as a threat when we approach the planet”, spoke Captain Julliard, softly.
“Shall I raise shields, captain?” asked Commander Harron, the first officer to the right of her.
“Affirmative”, the captain said. “Call a citizen alert, commander”, she continued, motioning to the Commander to her left, President Jackel. Both officers pressed a few buttons on the keypad. Red lights started flashing everywhere, and a computerised voice yelled from the back of the ship “All citizens to shelters! All citizens to shelters!” I thought of the sirens that would now be blaring everywhere in the Ultra City, like the sirens of World War Two, the up and down of the noise. I thought of all the people running or jumping into their cars and jumping into the large escape pods designed as shelters. But I had my own job to do.
I tapped a few commands into my console; setting course for the planet, then tapped the command to increase speed. The large ship shuddered and moved slowly towards the planet. The creature looked unmoved. But, as we got within a 1000km of the planet, we noticed that the ‘green dots’ had accelerated. Then, for no apparent reason, it attacked us.
The whole ship shook violently and a large noise came out, obviously from the creature engulfing us.
“Aaaaaaaallllllllllllllllfffffffffffff! Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaalllllllllllllllfffffffffffff!”
We don’t know what is was trying to say, but I couldn’t care in the bit. I was being torn from side to side of the ship, trying to hold onto something. Then the ship throttled violently backwards, and I slammed into the wall behind me. Then all was calm again.
I was lying against the wall with the pain in my back slowly subsiding. Red lights were still flashing, and the bridge was dark. The Captain stood up, and looked at the screen, then around the room. Most other people began standing up and taking their places. The Captain walked over to a button, pressed it and said “Medical Staff to the Bridge”, then looked around again.
I stood up, and looked at the screen. The creature was still there; it’s green dots pulsating at its regular rate.
“Alf”, came a croaky voice from the back, startling me and making me turn around. James Goodard was standing there, staring at the screen, blood down his face and a glint in his eye. “Alf”, he repeated, “Oh, Alf!”
* * * * *
A week had passed. 5 citizens and an officer were killed in the battle against the creature, 54 more citizens wounded. I, myself, couldn’t have felt better. In the trauma that was unfolding, I felt alive. Action and adventure is what I strived for, and I began to think I had finally got it.
Lieutenant
James Gordon had been let out of hospital after a few days in it, to spend a
day in the streets of the
The damage
we took from the creature is slowly being repaired. The
It is now the 4th day of the 32nd week, and the senior officers are having a discussion around the discussion table. The second Chief in Science, Lieutenant Harriet McMan, occupied the Science Chair. She was wearing a Scottish kilt and her long brown hair hang loosely behind her head.
“When will the engines be back online?” snaps the Captain, really nervous now that they were a sitting duck, so to say of. “We need to get a moving as this place is obviously dangerous”.
“Um, around 1 more day, Captain”, muttered Hurrengo Majengo, the Chief Engineer.
“Good. Mr-”
“James Goodard wishes to enter”, a computerised voice announced, interrupting all voices. The room fell quiet.
The Captain looked around, startled, to the door.
“I would let him in, Captain. Just get security to come over here at the same time”, I said. I knew James Goodard, and he often spent some time puzzling things over in a strange way. I knew he wasn’t mental.
“Are you joking”, said McMan, in her Scottish accent, “He’s been in a mental institute the last week!”
The Captain held up a hand, then, with the same hand, touched a button on the console in front of her. The door opened, entering James Goodard.
“Captain, I’m fine”, was the first thing he said, “but may I suggest we try to talk to Alf before we leave?”
The room fell silent once more.
* * * * *
Two hours later, after a pep talk from the Chief of Science about the language (which I thought boring), we arrived on the bridge to communicate with the phenomenon, which James had named Alf after the sound it made. Apparently, he had had a vision about the alphabet of the creature compared to the alphabet of the human language (which is weird, I know, but after the look of confidence he posed to everyone, I think they were all thinking it might be true), and he decided that they had to try and communicate.
“The planet is now unliveable on, there are too few resources”, muttered the Science officer, “the creature will soon be leaving. We must talk to it now”.
“Right. Initiate the talking protocol”, was the Captains reply.
“Talking protocol initiated”, Mr Goodard spoke softly.
“Say, “Hello, we come from Earth”.
“Message sent, Captain”.
On the screen, the creature turned purple. Then it turned blue.
“We have a reply, ‘Grujenko, majenero an alenso’, translating it as… ‘Talk, I didn’t know you could’, James Goodard said excitedly.
I was amazed. Talking with a space creature was easier then any of us thought.
“Say, “We come in peace”, said the Captain, in a more relaxed voice.
“Message sent”.
This time, the Creature didn’t turn purple for a while. The green dots increased their speed.
“Captain, I don’t think it likes us, I’m translating this message as… ‘So, you wish for a battle’, I think I must have miscalculated their language!”
I could sense the panic around us. This is it, I
thought, this is the action!
“Shields up! Weapons up! Citizen Alert!” yelled Commander Harron, the first officer. Red lights began to flash and klaxons blare, as I sat there tensely awaiting my orders.
“Tell it to back down”, yelled the Captain, relaxation blown away.
“Message sent, Captain”, yelled back Mr Goodard, “but I don’t think it will listen”.
Instead, it attacked. The creature covered us and shook the ship violently.
“Attack at will, Lieutenant”, the Captain roared at me, and I typed in a few commands on the console as quickly and as accurately as I could while trying to stay on my seat as the ship shook violently. Bingo, I thought.
The ship let loose with 5 torpedoes and 10 bursts of laser. It wasn’t until the 6th torpedo that the creature backed down. But it didn’t just back down, it grew smaller in size. Really quickly.
“Alf is decreasing in size, Captain, at a phenomenal rate.”
“Phew, we destroyed it,” the Captain spoke, a breath of relief in her voice.
Suddenly, I had this sudden urge to take the ship away. This was dangerous. I stared at the screen of the creature getting smaller, letting go of the planet, getting so small it was almost gone. Yet I knew it wasn’t gone, it had one more card up its sleeve.
I typed in commands into my console. The ship swung away and I accelerated it to the fastest the engines would allow. They may take damage, I thought, but at least we will be safe.
“Captain, the engines are at full power, they may overheat and take damage”, suddenly piped up Mr Hurrengo Majengo, in his Chinese accent.
“We’re moving, Captain”, I said, “That’s the reason”.
“I gave you no order to move. Stop at once. That is an order!”
“I don’t think you mean that Captain”, I said aloud. In thought, came the same repeating instinct – we have to get away.
“I do mean that! Stop at-”
Suddenly, for no apparent reason, a huge explosion sound flared up and on the screen the explosion appeared. The ship shook lightly, but that was all. The instinct vanished.
I typed a few commands to bring the ship to an all stop.
“Aye, Captain, All Stop”, I spoke softly.
“Captain, if we hadn’t moved, we would have been destroyed”, said Mr Goodard, answering everyone’s question at once. “We must have set off a self-destruct instinct, with an explosion powerful enough to bypass our shields and destroy our ship”.
Everyone stared at me. The Captain stared at me. Then, she rubbed her head and sat down.
* * * * *
We are once again scouring the galaxy for a planet to land
on. I am the ‘hero’ as it were, and yesterday we had a celebration party all
over the ship. I appeared on all the TV’s in
So, the story nears its end. You know I exist. I told you that at the beginning. But soon, you will forget me. You will put down this story, and leave it. You have read it, so that’s that. So be it, forget me – Tim Harrett – the man who saved the day. But there is one thing I would like you to remember instead. That some times, doing things against orders to save lives, or to bring about the greater good, may be better then just following orders blindly. Sometimes, to follow your instinct, your conscience, may bring happiness and good out of what you do. Sometimes.