STARTING POINT: HAIRBALL





Hairball

Tales of the Union. Short story. 2014 (c) Vanessa Ravencroft

Story takes place in the Galactic Chronicles Universe. Time : 2193 (OTT)



Based on STARTING POINT: HAIRBALL by Mark Ball Aug 10, 2014 0



 The Colonist ark Marco Polo was still sitting where it had touched down only a month ago. It would however never be able to leave again. The drive section and the core reactor module had been removed and was now the core part of the settlement Green Horizon.

Ten thousand colonists had left Earth in 2191 and arrived on HD 195019 is a star system in the constellation of Delphinus on December 4th, 2193.

After traveling 20 parsec in induced hibernation they made landfall on the second planet orbiting around the yellow dwarf or star A of this binary star system.

The suns had been renamed and was now known as Amphion and Zethus, the twin sons of Zeus and their new home a beautiful Garden-world with Earth like character was know known as Garden Eden.

United Earth explorers had surveyed the planet and in 2182 and found it perfectly suitable for colonization.

The local bio sphere was diverse and abundant, and its DNA was turning the right way meaning chiral molecules were turning the same way as human DNA and was thus adaptable and consumable.

That also meant that the human immune system could handle local bacteria and other microbes.

The atmosphere was as perfect as it could be, with only one percent more oxygen than Earth standard, making fires burn faster and hotter.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Thanks to an axial tilt of only two percent, seasons were expected to be mild and temperatures more or less constant.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">The survey team did not notice any sentient life forms and there were no obvious signs there had ever been a civilization of any kind.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Their colonist group came from all corners of United Earth, but with a majority from the North American continent.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Unlike many colonist groups that had left Earth before them, as part of the so called second Exodus, their group was not centered around a common believe, or cause. As for example the members of the Viking movement leaving for Nilfeheim, or the New Catholics that left for Dolce Vita.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Many arks had left Earth to destinations all over the local spur of the Orion Arm already and every year more humans made the decision to leave the over crowded Earth and find a new world and new home.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">The incentive was great, the Bureau of Colonist affairs offered any group that wanted to leave a so called colonization pack, a selection of possible destinations and an Ark to get there.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I stood on top of a grass covered hill and gazed over the valley before me.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">The settlement had grown around the central power station and community center. The busy din of construction noise of whining chainsaws and pounding hammers reached my ears almost like a song of progress and industry.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">A yellow painted crawler pulling a trailer loaded with tree logs was making its way from the almost continent spanning forest that had once reached the shores of the huge, silvery shimmering lake that stretched all the way to the distant mountain range, we called the Seven Old Men as there were seven majestic mountains reaching with their snow capped peaks high into the deep blue skies of this new world.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">The Ark had plowed a deep furrow into the ground and brushed many trees aside as it came down on its automated landing approach.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Now there was activity around the space born giant that had brought us all, the colonists, my parents and of course Kevin my twin brother.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">How different it all was from the dirty Bronx neighborhood in old New York where I was born. True I was only twelve when we left but even for me the change in our lifestyle was quite drastic.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I didn't miss the tarmac yard with a rusty basketball hoop on a rusty pole, the aggressive gangs or the garish graffiti on virtually any possible surface.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Here I had an entire continent to explore, and perhaps even an entire planet, once the promised freighter with more tech and flyers would arrive.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">The coppery red hair of Kevin my brother bobbed like a rubber ball between the hip high grass as he made his way from the settlement to where I was standing.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">He arrived somewhat out of breath as the gravitation of our new home was just one percent over Earth standard, normally not really felt, but made running up a hill a straining chore.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">“I have a good mind and kick your ass, “ Kevin snarled instead of a more brotherly greeting. “You sneaked out before our chores were done and Dad made me do your part as well.” “Though luck, Copperhead. You couldn't hide in a crowd of ten thousand, at Friday afternoon on Times Square.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">“Maybe Mom had fun with someone else, and that is why you the only one of us Horigans with black hair.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">“You are stupid. We are twins you idiot.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">“Well not from the looks of it.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">“Why did you come up here then?”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">“Aren't we going to the Spring pool and take a swim? I bet Sonja Miller and Mary O' Callaghan will be there.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">“Yeah but of course Sid and Ronald will be there too. Naa I rather go a little exploring. Maybe I can bag me one of these Furry four legs, Mom makes a delicious stew out of them. Besides if we find something new, Sonja's father buys any new life form we find for his Survey catalog. You do know the Freighter from Earth is due in a few month. I intend to buy me a Flyer.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">“Alright, let's go then before Dad sees us up here and decides to give us more chores.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I checked the magazine of my Remington Colonist Rifle and started to walk toward the forest. Kevin's suggestion that Dad might look for us, was not born out of the blue, it had happened before. I had no particular mind to spend the rest of the day helping making bricks or debarking logs.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I never seen a forest on Earth for real, other than the few trees in Central Park, but I imagined the forest here was not too different from the ones in Washington state where mother was born and had shown us vids and pictures.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">The light of our twin suns filtered through the dense canopy reached the ground like a greenish haze and you could almost see the individual rays as they penetrated this green roof and painted a pattern of light and shadow over the unspoiled forest ground.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">The air smelled fresh with a hint of a minty scent that came from abundant bushes of the Mento plant. Jarvis Bronson had invented a fresh tasting tea made of these leaves.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">A thick layer of decaying tree leaves, wood branches and patches of thick green moss made it possible to walk making no sound at all.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">The forest serene tranquility was interrupted only occasionally by a bird call or the throaty growl of the Zotty Browns, a local predator somewhat akin to a bear from Earth. The only bear I had ever seen was in the Zoo of course.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Zotty Browns could be dangerous, but in most cases ran if they spotted humans.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">If not, my Remington was more than enough to defend ourselves. I had shot two Zottys before.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">As we walked between the trees, I spotted something light brown and fluffy perched on a low hanging branch.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">t was unlike any creature I had ever seen. I could identify no appendages besides the two small, clawed feet it was using to cling to the tree branch. There were no eyes, no ears, no mouth, no… nothing.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">It was a ball of fur – feet and fur – and it hung motionless amid the vines as though it had no purpose in life beyond decoration. A furry bauble, about the size of a tennis ball.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I reached out to poke it, and it did not move. Tentatively, I gave it a little squeeze. Still nothing.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">“Don’t,” Kevin complained, but I paid him no mind. Kevin was a wimp.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Certain that the little critter could do me no harm, I plucked it from its perch. In my hand, it retracted its tiny feet to become a perfect hairy sphere.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">“You don’t know what it is,” Kevin whined. “It could be poisonous.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">“Poisonous?” I laughed. “I’m not gonna eat it.” I knew full well what he meant. He meant ‘venomous’. I didn’t care. The thing seemed so harmless, so pathetic, and I was curious. Growing confident, I tossed it from hand to hand, gauging its weight and texture. It was soft, the silly thing. And light.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I’ll admit that I was provoking it. I wanted it to react in some way so that I could learn more about it. Since it had no visible eyes, I wanted to be sure that it had at least some kind of sense of what was going on around it, that it wasn’t completely improbable, impractical. I needed to be sure that what I was looking at wasn’t impossible. At least if the thing were to bite me I’d know it had a mouth.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">“Here, catch!” I tossed the hairball to Kevin, and he caught it as though it were a grenade – afraid to handle it, but even more afraid to drop it.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Imagine my surprise when the little bugger turned red in his hands. Imagine my shock when all the color suddenly drained from Kevin’s face!

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">It wasn’t fear that had paralyzed him, it was the creature. It did something to him. At the time, I didn’t know what.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Turns out it had senses after all. Turns out it was capable of defending itself after all.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I’d got the response I’d been looking for.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Now, Imagine my horror when Kevin suddenly collapsed in front of me.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I was stunned, my own brother twitching in painful looking convulsions, his eyes turned up so I could see only the white and foamy spittle bubbling from the corners of his mouth.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">The little creature, was visibly gaining in size and was now crawling up Kevin's chest.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I used the but of my Remington much like a baseball bat and batted the furry thing with a powerful violent swing away.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Kevin stopped his convulsions, but now was looking as if he was dead.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">“Kevin!”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I felt for his pulse, it was there but weak.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Something light and soft dropped on my shoulder. In a reaction of panic I grabbed it and tossed it with a ripping move away. Leaving my hand burning as if I had dunked it in a vat of acid.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I jumped as another one dropped, missing me by mere inches.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I looked up, there were thousands!

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I raised the Remington and fired, yes the bullets killed the things in a violent little explosion of blood fur and guts, but there was no reaction from the others. I certainly did not have enough ammo to kill them all.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">In all this I wondered how did they get up there, how did they move?

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">They had no wings.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I tried anyway and started to pull Kevin on his arms, away from the overhanging bushes, as I was doing that more fur balls dropped, yet for some reason I made it batting the things with my guns but while inching Kevin and me away from the bushes.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I was bleeding from hundreds of scratches left behind by the needle sharp tiny claws.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">A thought formed in my mind and somehow it felt as if it was not mine. “LEAVE!”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Out from Kevin;s pocket his PDD slipped into the open.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I could have kissed and hugged him. Of course I had left mine at home so I could say. “Sorry Dad, forgot it at home, that's why I didn't answer your call.” I swiped over the call sensor and was elated as I heard Dad's voice. “Ralph where are you? Is Kevin with you?” “Yes Dad, Kevin is hurt. We need help.” “The wood cutters have been attacked too, I am going to get you..”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">–

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Out here away from the dense bushes, the fur balls only attacked sporadic. They could fly after all, not that I noticed any wings or anything else.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">And I never thought that my love for baseball would ever come in handy. I must have whacked a hundred of them.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">The high pitched whine of Hydrogen turbine sounded like the sweetest music, as one of the settlements heavy yellow crawlers broke through the ticket. Pushing over trees with the unstoppable power of a 5000 horse power D91-Colony Multi Use Cat.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">My dad jumped from the drivers compartment holding a TKU-PDT1 firing bolts of super heated near light speed accelerated plasma into the bushes, starting a roaring fire.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">A painful thought drilled to the core of my mind, “MURDERERS”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Dad also staggered held his head but then scooped Kevin of the ground and yelled at me to follow.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">–

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">The mood was different in the community hall. Almost everyone was here, those who could not find standing space had crowded around the entrance.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">John Miller and Michelle Saunders stood behind the small lectern on the raised stage area that was usually used for religious services and the weekly meeting of the Colony leaders.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Michelle was the elected Colony leader and John Miller the doctor and go to for anything scientific.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">A man with his arm in a derma patch bag and a support sling, was Archie Knox, the owner of the saw mill. He was a big man and barked. “We lost Mark and Steve, those poor devils leave children and wives behind. What are we dealing with, should we not call for help?”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Glen Patrick, the owner of the first and so far only bar and tavern objected. “Those things act intelligent, if we call they make us evacuate. You know sentient local live comes first. If we call we loose everything. I say we order us some flame throwers and a strong pesticide and exterminate those fur balls.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Ivana Brooks, the wife of Mark, one of the men that died still in tears clenched her fists. “I like that idea.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Michelle raised her arms and managed to calm them down somewhat and said. “Dr. Miller what do you think we are dealing with?” “I don't have any scientific answers as I simply have not enough data to base them on, but I believe we are dealing with psionic gifted beings. You know telepathic and telekinetic powers. We all received their thought messages. From what I could observe so far I think we dealing with a collective intelligence, perhaps these fur balls act like brain cells of a collective larger entity.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">“Why have they acted only now and not from the start? Or when the survey team was here?”Michelle asked.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">“I don't know but perhaps they needed to learn about us first. Or someone killed or provoked one, who knows.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Mr. Patrick wrinkled the skin above his eyes. “Who knows how many are out there, there could be millions.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">“Just like the cells of a brain, Mr. Patrick it has millions of cells as well.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Someone in the back said. “I don't want to leave. Can we not capture one, send their DNA info to a Bio Lab back home and have them create a specific virus or poison that kills those things?”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Michelle if we do, we must all keep it quiet. I don't want to answer before a United Earth court for a potential genocide on a sentient species.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">“Screw that sentient species. They killed my husband, they started it. Let them realize it isn't a good idea to start a fight with New Yorkers. Screw the courts, they aren't here.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Michelle again raised her hands. “Alright lets vote on it.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">–

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I did get my wish, I was flying with a brand new Ford Multi-Sky above the seemingly endless sea of trees, while spray containers underneath released an almost invisible mist of genetic engineered viruses that would kill every single fur ball. SII Bio Engineering had responded to our collective GalNet call and produced the viral killer custom tailored to the DNA of the Fur-Balls. It had arrived only a week ago.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">From below I felt a strong thought of pain. “MURDERERS!”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">I cramped my hand around the flight control and pushed the control that opened the nozzle of the next container. “That's for Kevin you bastards, never mess with a New Yorker.”

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">Before my inner eye I saw the first graves on our new home, one of them was that of my red headed brother.

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">

<p lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom:0cm;line-height:0.53cm">END