Beyond the Farthest Star: Chapter 10

Amy reluctantly followed Miles into the cafeteria. There were about twenty or thirty people in the room, seated at tables. To her surprise the crowd was not randomly scattered throughout the room. Instead they had formed groups and were eagerly talking in low tones. As Miles led her up to the counter she overhead several of them talking.

“They’re so beautiful!” one man exclaimed.

“I know,” another said, “but what does it mean? Did Earth do this?”

“No way,” a voice replied. “They’re even worse off than we are! This has to be the Rangers.”

“Aw, the Rangers are just a myth! They’re not real.”

“Then who did it?” a voice asked. “Don’t tell me it just happened all on its own!”

“Well, it might have. It has been a long time, you know. Maybe something just went wrong.”

Amy nudged Miles. “They’re talking about the stars, aren’t they?”

“Indeed they are,” Miles replied. “What you did last night has caught the attention of everyone. It has had quite an impact on the city. I think you’ve given them hope – and perhaps inspired a few dreams as well.”

A voice behind Amy spoke up. “Are you still carrying on with that, Miles?”

Amy turned around and saw a middle-aged man standing behind her, holding an empty tray. Amy was surprised at how short he was – he was barely taller than her, and yet he was clearly a full-grown adult. With a start Amy realized that all the men in the room were short, with the exception of Miles.

Amy opened her mouth to say something but then decided against it. I’ll just ask Miles about it later, she decided. For now I’ll just play along and act like nothing strange is going on. There are so many things that are different! It’s going to take time to sort it all out.

Instead she looked at him and held out her hand. “Hello! I didn’t see you standing there. My name is Amy.”

The man shook her hand, smiling. “It’s nice to meet you, young lady! My name is Lawson – Noel Lawson. But you can call me Noel.” He turned and look at Miles. “See, she does know our language! I told you that she was just a prospector. She was probably dazed from her confrontation with Lizzie. That’s why we couldn’t understand her last night.”

“Lizzie?” Amy asked.

“The monster that haunts the ruins of Tikal,” Noel explained. “Or, at least, used to, until it died last night. You know, speaking of that, you’re an incredibly lucky girl! If that freak electrical disturbance hadn’t happened right when it did Lizzie would have killed you before we could have stopped her. You’re lucky to be alive!”

“Freak electrical disturbance?” Amy asked, puzzled. “What are you talking about? I’m the one that killed Lizzie.”

“With what – your bare hands? You weren’t exactly carrying anything last night – unless we missed something in the dark.”

“I guess you could say I did it with my bare hands,” Amy said slowly. “It’s a bit more complicated than that. You see, in my bloodstream are all these nanites that–”

“Oh, right – nanites! Of course.” Noel looked at the girl, puzzled, then glanced at Miles. “Have you taken her to see a doctor? You know, it’s possible that she’s feeling the after-effects of being outside without an air suit. You may want to have her checked–”

“For brain damage,” Amy said sourly. “I’m not deaf, you know, and I am standing right here next to you. Look, Noel, I am not a moron. You have to understand–”

“I mean no offense,” Noel said hastily. “It’s just not advisable to be outside without an air supply and a protective suit. I just wanted to make sure you were all right.”

“If you say so,” Amy replied.

Miles nudged her. “I hate to intrude, but I think you may be holding up the line.”

“Oh – sorry!” Amy grabbed a tray, a cup, and some silverware, and stepped up to the window. A lady on the other side of the window handed her a bowl that was filled with a gray paste. She then took Amy’s cup, filled it with water, and handed it back to her.

Amy placed the bowl on her tray and stepped out of the way. “What is this?” she asked.

Miles got his bowl, placed it on his tray, and then led Amy across the room to an empty table. He sat down across from Amy. Noel followed a few moments later.

“It’s breakfast,” Miles said, as he began eating it.

Amy poked it with a spoon. “No, really. What is it? It looks like glue, only it smells much worse.”

“It’s protein paste!” Noel said, as he sat down beside Miles. “We get three allotments a day in return for our work on the ZPE. This is what we eat morning, noon, and night.”

“You’ve got to be kidding! This isn’t food. This looks more like toxic waste.”

Miles smiled. “I admit it doesn’t look that appealing, but it is nutritious. This is what everyone here eats, and has for centuries.”

“You mean you don’t have real food anymore?”

“We do, but only the rich can afford it, and even they can only have it in very small amounts. What you have to realize is that plant life cannot survive on the surface. All of our food has to be grown underground, and it takes a lot of energy to do that – energy the colony desperately needs to survive. It’s just not wise to waste energy growing plants when we can produce this protein paste much more cheaply. It may not be appetizing but at least no one starves.”

“I guess that makes sense,” Amy said reluctantly. “But can’t you do something about it? I mean, why not build a few more ZPEs to boost your energy output? Then you could have real food, instead of this horrible glop.”

Noel burst out laughing. “Build a ZPE! That would be fabulous, just fabulous! And we can start raising unicorns while we’re at it. What planet are you from, anyway?”

“Tonina,” Amy said, puzzled. “But I was born here on Mars.”

Miles interrupted. “What Noel means is that no one knows how to build a zero-point-energy plant. The one down the hall was built two thousand years ago, and people today barely know how it works. It’s been a struggle just to keep it going. Building a new one is out of the question.”

“Exactly,” Noel agreed. “In fact, it’s a miracle that we even have that one! The art of building ZPEs had been lost entirely until the legendary Donald Elliott rediscovered it. He’s the one that built our ZPE. If it hadn’t been for him we’d all be dead.”

Amy pushed the foul-smelling bowl away. “Why is that?”

“Don was a visionary,” Noel said enthusiastically. “He was one of the first people to realize that the planet’s atmosphere was slowly dying. In order to save mankind he created New Tikal – an underground home that was large enough to house everyone that was still alive.”

“It was?” Amy asked. “But this place isn’t that big! Just how many people were there?”

“A few million, maybe. I don’t know the exact number. But Don saved them all! He built New Tikal as a genuine ‘city of tomorrow’ – the most advanced city on the planet, stocked with the most modern conveniences. People quickly abandoned their dying colonies and flocked here. It was a tremendous success, and we’ve been here ever since.”

“Wait a minute. Let’s back up a bit. What do you mean, a few million? This planet used to be home to billions of people! Where did they all go?”

“Oh, that was a long time ago,” Noel replied. “There haven’t been billions of people here since the Wall was erected – if there were even that many back then. According to legend, before the Wall was built there were billions of people living on Mars in a thriving, advanced society. Then the Spanish Emperor attacked the planet with some ancient weapon and killed nearly everyone, poisoning the planet and leaving only pockets of survivors. Mankind limped on and never recovered.”

“That’s awful!” Amy said.

“I wouldn’t take it too seriously,” Noel replied. “I doubt any of it’s actually true. Sure, the Wall was real enough, but these legends of ancient golden ages are probably just myths, made up by depressed people who are longing for better days.”

“But they’re not made up,” Amy protested. “I was there, Noel. It happened on December 5th, 1867. I’ll never forget it as long as I live. I was in the spaceport with my family, getting ready to leave for Tau Ceti. We were all on the Sparrow with Captain Max and Jones. While we were there the Emperor used Iapetus to attack Tikal. It was – it was horrible beyond belief. All those people, dead, just like that. Most of the city was instantly vaporized, and what little survived was set on fire. You could see the smoke of the city rising into the atmosphere. Even from the spaceport we could see it.”

Noel frowned. “Amy, you do realize that Iapetus is a moon of Saturn, right?”

“I know. It’s also a weapon – a terrible, terrible weapon built by the Old Ones that were destroyed before the Flood. They used it to turn the fifth planet into an asteroid belt.”

“Now that’s a legend I haven’t heard before,” Noel remarked. “It’s a little far-fetched, though. It needs to be more plausible before it’ll catch on. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to get more of this great paste.”

Noel stood up, left the table, and walked back to the window. Miles shook his head as he walked away. “He doesn’t believe a word you said, even though you have told him the truth.”

“I know,” Amy replied.

“You could always demonstrate that you’re telling the truth,” Miles commented. “I know who you are, but he does not.”

Amy sighed. “I really don’t care what he believes. To be honest, I don’t care about much of anything right now. I just feel like I’ve died. I’m empty, and I don’t know what to do. Do you know what my life has been like lately?”

“I really can’t imagine,” Miles said. “I know it’s been hard.”

“Hard?” Amy exclaimed. “Miles, I watched as an insane Emperor destroyed my hometown. I saw millions of people die in a matter of seconds. Then I was taken away from everything I knew and dumped into this horrible century, where my sister, my family, and all my friends were murdered by another insane leader. Now I come back here and find that my home planet is dead and its people are cowering in the dark, eating disgusting protein paste and acting like everything is fine. I’ve had it, Miles. I’ve had enough of all of this! And I’m supposed to care that Noel thinks I’m insane? Seriously? Who cares what he thinks?”

At that moment Noel came back to the table and sat down. “I was in luck – they had a little bit left! This is my lucky day.”

“You can have mine,” Amy said.

“Are you sure?”

“Believe me, I’m not going to eat that. It is not going to happen.”

“But you’ve got to eat something,” Noel said, concerned.

“I’ll figure something out,” Amy replied.

“If you say so,” Noel said. He took Amy’s bowl and put it on his tray. “Maybe you’ll feel more like eating at lunchtime. So, anyway, what were you doing in the desert last night? Were you looking for Don Elliott’s treasure?”

“I’m fine,” Amy replied. “I had a good night’s sleep, and I’m feeling well. I’m not at all upset over the loss of my family. Thanks for asking.”

“Oh, I’m sorry! I assumed that Miles had already covered the bases. I don’t mean to be rude – I can just be direct sometimes.”

“It’s all right,” Amy sighed. “About last night – I don’t know. I just wanted to come home, I guess. I was born in Tikal. I wanted to see what had happened to it.”

“I didn’t know there were any settlements in that area,” Noel remarked.

“I wasn’t born in a settlement. I was born in the city of Tikal itself. The old city, that apparently isn’t standing anymore.”

“I see,” Noel said. “You do realize that city was destroyed five thousand years ago, don’t you?”

“Of course I do! Like I said, I was there the day it was destroyed. I actually saw it happen.”

“Right!” Noel said. “Of course. Even though you’re just a teenager, you were there when it happened, five thousand years ago. How silly of me. So, um, do you have any family?”

“I did, until yesterday, when they were all murdered.”

“Oh. I’m sorry – I didn’t know. Wait a minute! Miles, didn’t you say something about someone dying yesterday? Or did I misunderstand you?”

“No, I did,” Miles agreed. “These are indeed the same people. I just didn’t realize that Amy had survived – I thought that everyone had been killed. There were four of them, you know. Amy had a mother, a father, and a twin sister. Amy was the only one who survived.”

“And the dog,” Amy said.

“The dog?” Miles asked. “I don’t remember hearing about him.”

“We had a dog named Alex. Well, we still do, I guess. I bet he’s still on Tonina. He must be so unhappy there, with everyone gone. I’m sure he doesn’t understand what happened.”

“Why don’t you bring him here?” Miles asked.

Amy shook her head. “I wish I could, but that would mean going back. If I went back, Steve would find out where I was, and he’d want to talk, but I just can’t deal with him right now. I’m sure the Steward will take care of Alex until all of this is over.”

“Um, ok,” Miles said uncertainly. “I’m afraid I’m lost. Who is–”

“That’s it!” Noel interrupted. “This is all about being lost, isn’t it? Losing one’s entirely family is a deeply traumatic event. It’s not at all hard to understand becoming a bit disoriented after something like that. It can definitely affect one’s perception of reality. In fact, the psychological trauma could have all sorts of repercussions, and exhibit itself in unsettling ways. That explains everything! But Amy, please know that I am deeply sorry for your loss. I did not know.”

“No, you didn’t. But you’re not the one I’m worried about. Adrian Garza is the one I’m angry with. He’s not sorry now, but by the time I’m done with him he’s going to be sorry!”

“Who is Adrian?” Miles asked.

“He’s the monster that betrayed my family to their deaths,” Amy explained. “He’s the reason they’re all dead right now.”

“And you know where he is?”

“Oh yes! He’s on Xanthe, in Tau Ceti.”

“Has he been arrested for murder?” Miles asked.

“Arrested?” Amy asked. “Who would arrest him? Don’t you realize that I’m the only one left? It’s me versus that entire world!”

“Do you mean that the planet attacked your family, and Adrian was one of the leaders?”

“Something like that,” Amy said.

“So it was war, then. Did they win the war?”

“No, they lost. They killed everyone, but they lost. All of the technology on that planet is now dead. They can’t wage war any more. They’re completely helpless.”

“So what are you going to do with them?” Miles asked

“Hold on, guys,” Noel interrupted. “I know it’s easy to get lost in grief, but this is ridiculous. You have–”

“Quiet,” Miles interrupted. “This is important. Amy, what are you going to do?”

“I don’t know,” she sighed. “I wanted to destroy the whole planet, but Steve stopped me. Now I don’t know what to do.”

“That’s the second time you’ve mentioned a Steve. Just who is he? I don’t think I’ve heard of him.”

“He’s the Sentinel,” Amy explained. “He’s – it’s complicated. He’s a friend of mine, I guess – or at least, he’s usually my friend. But this time he stopped me. He said I had no right to destroy Xanthe.”

“How many people are on Xanthe?”

“About four hundred thousand,” Amy said.

“That’s a lot of people,” Miles said quietly. “Were you really going to kill all of them over what Adrian had done?”

“You don’t understand! They’re evil, Miles. They created the swarms and used them to destroy every last Ranger colony. They wiped out billions of people, and then spent five thousand years in pods, living out depraved fantasies. They’re not good people! They’re a deeply corrupt society. Why shouldn’t they be wiped out? I mean, after all, they didn’t spare their neighbors. Why should they be spared?”

“But what if they can be saved?” Miles asked. “They may not all be like Adrian. Maybe some of them want to change but just don’t know how. Maybe they’re simply without hope.”

“They’re murderers,” Amy argued. “They killed my family when we had done them no harm at all. They deserve to die.”

“That may be true. But even so, if you killed them, would that be justice – or revenge? It is one thing to arrest a murderer and put him on trial. It is quite another to hunt down your enemy and kill him with your own hands.”

“Then what am I supposed to do? Just do nothing, while he laughs in my face and tells me that he’s untouchable?”

“You could try forgiving him,” Miles said.

“Seriously? He’s not sorry, you know. In fact, he’s proud of what he’s done! He would do it again in a heartbeat.”

“I didn’t say that he was sorry,” Miles replied. “I know this is hard for you to hear right now, and this may not be the best time to discuss this, but Amy, you have a very deep hatred for Adrian and that hatred is coloring your view of an entire planet. The people of that world may indeed be as evil as you say, but what that means is that they are in desperate need of redemption. You are the only person that can possibly help them, and you can’t help them while you’re consumed with rage toward Adrian. You have to let that anger go so you can start thinking clearly again.”

“You’re crazy! Do you really expect me to just forgive and forget and act like it was no big deal?”

Miles shook his head. “I didn’t say it wasn’t a big deal. Nor does forgiveness mean that there are no consequences. I’m not asking you to trust Adrian – it sounds like he is a dangerous man, and if he was willing to kill you then he may be willing to kill others as well. You may have no choice. But what I am saying is that Xanthe needs your help, and until you let go of your anger you’re not going to be able to see clearly enough to help them. Blindly lashing out at people in anger – even people who deserve it – is not the same thing as justice.”

Noel interrupted. “And I think that’s enough doom, gloom, and despair for one morning. I don’t know about you two, but I’ve got a ZPE that needs my attention.”

Miles smiled. “I thought you were going to come over to my place to learn how to manufacture replacement parts!”

“Oh, that’s right! Of course – that’s a lot more important. Can we still do that?”

“I actually have a better idea. Why don’t you ask Amy to help you fix your ZPE? I’m sure she can answer all of your questions about it.”

Amy spoke up. “That reminds me! I was looking at your ZPE earlier today and I’ve got to say that it’s in really terrible shape. Do you realize that it’s running at only 30% efficiency?”

“29.74%, to be precise,” Noel said. “That’s a full percentage higher than yesterday! I’m very excited about it. We’ve made some great strides!”

“It’s still 70 percentage points less than what it should be. It has got to be fixed before it breaks down and hurts somebody!”

“Can you fix it?” Miles asked.

“Of course I can fix it,” Amy replied.

“Really?” Noel asked doubtfully. “You look a little young to have ZPE experience! I don’t mean to be rude, but I don’t think they teach that sort of thing in elementary school.”

“Why don’t you take me to the plant and I’ll show you,” Amy said.

Noel shrugged. “I was heading that way anyway. Sure, come on. Even if you’ve never seen one before you just might learn something. It’s really quite a remarkable piece of machinery.”

Amy sighed, then nodded. She picked up her glass, set it on the tray, and then carried the tray to the counter. After she had disposed of it she turned to Miles. “Will you be coming with us?”

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Miles replied.

“Then follow me,” Noel said.