Last week was horrible, easily the worst week of my reign. I knew my people (or at least the leadership of my people) were crazy, but I never dreamed they would commit to something as stupid as irradiating our planet while destroying much of it in an explosive fiery holocaust. How ridiculous, destructive and wasteful can you get? Well, they’re still my people, so I decided to organize another full-scale evacuation of all the people we could possibly salvage. So, I temporarily annexed the Tetrite fleet and the rest of the Dux fleet and then called in the Zeelok fleet from their exploratory and policing missions. All the vessels that could be spared were sent to Earth for our second rescue mission.
Half of the population of Earth was either dead or beyond help by the time the vast fleet of rescue vessels had arrived. I, in my ship Pegasus, arrived first and I began to formulate a plan to evacuate all the people who had a good chance of recovering from radiation sickness on their own. I would have to filter all of the survivors through my force shield and hope they recovered. It will be a daunting task at best and will take weeks to accomplish.
Many of the people alive on Earth will die without a chance to recover because they are simply too ill to recover and I can’t save everyone. I must only save those with a chance of survival. Even with my huge fleet attending them, the survivors I do evacuate will be hard-pressed to survive. Of those that are given an opportunity to try to recover many will live, but some will die.
As the fleet loomed above, I left my ship and reached out with my mind to the places on Earth that were least affected by the fallout and fires. As I found people with the potential for recovery, I transported them through my force shield, filtering out anything harmful to their health and recovery. I then transported them to the waiting ships. They were arriving aboard the awaiting vessels without radioactive contamination to deal with.
Only the Dux were able to effectively deal with contaminated guests, so I was glad everyone didn’t have to be sent to a Dux ship first and then moved again to another waiting vessel after decontamination. At first, I was only transporting a few people at a time filtering them through my shield and then on to the awaiting vessels, but then I quickly gained confidence and started moving small groups and then larger groups. I became an assembly line conduit, transporting humanity to awaiting ships that moved off as they filled making room for the next available empty vessel. This was much more time consuming than transporting the handful of radioactive family members and the radiation-free refugees during the first rescue.
As each fleet was filled, in turn, they were sent to deliver my people to one of three awaiting planets, one of which was Terra. Part of the Dux fleet was sent to each of the planets to prepare temporary accommodations as soon as I knew that their presence was unnecessary for decontamination duty. I specifically chose species that looked human to do most of the transportation duties. Hopefully, this would lessen the shock and make my people more comfortable with the fact that they were on alien space crafts. I sent Tetrite interpreters to each vessel to try to answer the refugee’s questions but made sure there was a barrier between them to provide for their safety. Humans in the grip of fear either sit docile or lash out violently. I didn’t want to risk allowing the Humans, with their violent propensities, the opportunity to harm one of my interpreters. The planets, set up as the receptacles of humanity, were planets in relatively close proximity to each other (in astronomical terms). I would eventually ally them as the Terrian Alliance. It would be a new cradle of humanity with the added advantage of “not having all our eggs in one basket.”
The first planet is obviously Terra. The people with the least chance of surviving were sent there after the healthier people were already transported to the other planets. I did this specifically because the other previously transplanted human inhabitants could help nurse them back to health and properly bury, or dispose of the bodies of those that didn’t survive, in accordance with the victim’s religious or social customs. The other two planets were Aquila and Maya.
Each of these planets was smaller than Earth with Aquila being the larger of the two. Aquila was a few hundred miles in diameter smaller than Venus and Maya about the same size as Mars. Aquila was very Earth-like with grasslands, swamps, deserts, forests, and frozen poles. It wasn’t as hospitable as Terra, but more hospitable than Maya. Maya was hotter and more humid with vast aquatic kelp-like forests on vast tidal plains, rainforests, and frequent rain during the rainy season that lasted 8 of its 13 lunar months. Unlike Aquila, which had a comparable landmass to ocean ratio to Earth, Maya is mostly ocean that covers 90% of the planet’s surface.
I sent the hardiest, most likely to survive, maritime populations to Maya. Each planet had a single moon that stabilized the planet’s axis and the tidal forces in their seas. Each planet, except Terra, had large carnivores. All of Maya’s carnivores were aquatic, but Aquila had both aquatic and terrestrial carnivores, but none were larger than an American timber wolf. All three planets were excellent choices, and if managed properly, would sustain our species for millions of years.
In all, we rescued and relocated almost 1.6 billion people in a matter of 6 weeks. It was the largest permanent relocation of any species in recorded history. And, the recorded history of the sapient life forms of the Milky Way Galaxy stretched back for 265 million years. This was truly an epic accomplishment. Most of the species of my Empire offered advice, information, technology, and assistance. Even some of the new races recruited into my Empire by the Zeelok were willing to help. They were very grateful to me for freeing them from the tyrannical Junock.
I accepted all the help I could get but focused on environmental maintenance information, technology, and medical support. Instead of waiting for my people to advance in their own time, relying on fate luck and chance, I decided to welcome humanity into the Empire and guide them into the future. I had no idea if they would heed my advice or not, but I felt it was better than the alternative, allowing them to stumble through life, maturing at different rates on the various planets they occupied. I felt that having them mature at the same rate would be both socially and economically beneficial to all.
My task was overwhelming. I had to sift through all the information, technology and advice of the currently contributing 26 worlds of my Empire and decide what humanity should and shouldn’t know, at least for now. As they learned and matured, I could eventually divulge all the knowledge of the known universe, but for now, they only needed to know what they needed to know. So, I formed a committee to assist me in determining what they need to know now. Keesha was co-chairman of the committee and the other members consisted of one or two representatives of the best and brightest of the 26 contributing species. I had already been given all the knowledge of my sector of the galaxy through the amulet, but still had a lot to learn. Through exploration and conflict, many worlds and species had been added to my Empire, so I had to assimilate their knowledge and technology the hard way. Fortunately for everyone, I could assimilate information at an alarming rate, and was well on my way to accumulating all the knowledge of the currently known universe, while accumulating new knowledge through reports as the Dux and Zeelok continued their exploration of the galaxy. This new information will be part of the information considered in order to bring my people to a technological level that will make them a welcomed part of my empire.
While we were sifting through the information, part of the Dux fleet was creating starter cities for the inhabitants of each of the fledgling Terrian worlds. They were also sharing the technology necessary for humans to take over and continue the building process. Construction-related environmental impact studies were of little importance at this juncture, because the people needed to be housed, but the studies were conducted in unison with the construction to reduce the environmental impact of future construction. The same was done for the farms created to feed the masses.
The native eatable flora was employed instead of the plant species of Earth in order to keep the ecosystem stable. Thousands of culinary taste tests and trials were conducted, of course, to find suitable plant species to farm. Similar studies were conducted concerning the fauna of each planet, testing their palatability while ensuring the preservation of each of the unique species of the planets. We also investigated the fauna’s viability for domestication, to provide readily available protein-rich food sources. “Man cannot live by bread alone.”
The humans adapted well to their new surroundings and to the technology and knowledge being given to them. Of the approximately 1.72 billion people we rescued and relocated, just under 1.72 billion survived. By the time the census was completed and the deaths by attrition of the relocated people calculated, the population had again almost reached 1.72 billion. Many of the original relocated women were pregnant before the relocation, and many had already given birth to their children on their new worlds. There were 16,727 deaths due to the people simply not being able to recover, but there had also been 17,004 live viable births. Unfortunately, there were also many spontaneous abortions and delayed stillbirths due to radiation sickness.
Unconscious in the hospital, Bob ranted silently: “What a crazy knot-headed mistake, I can’t believe he didn’t count the stillborn as losses. All human life is precious and irreplaceable.”
But, as for now, the population was stable and slowly growing. I also anticipated a population explosion before the year is out. A “baby boom” is often anticipated after a traumatic regional or global experience. I by no means anticipate a departure from that norm.
As the months folded over into years, the fledgling worlds of the Terrain Alliance grew and matured, easily mastering the technology given to them. They became a gem in the crown of my Empire. Most of our family members relocated to Terra including my parents. Only Keesha’s mother stayed with us on Tetra. She was due to retire from teaching anyway so, she opted to retire to a place where she felt comfortable and loved.
The family members on my side of the family enjoyed the camaraderie of being with members of their own species, as well as being close to each other on Terra to encourage family visits and reunions. I have always had a rather tight-knit family. Keesha and I visited often, with her mother in toe, never losing sight of our roots and familial obligations. All the people including our family members were keeping their new worlds pristine. The initial environmental impact studies proved invaluable in subsequent construction. The ecosystems were safe and all the flora and fauna flourished.
Twenty years had elapsed, and both of my parents and most of my elderly Aunts and Uncles had succumbed to the ravages of time and Keesha’s mother was in her mid-sixties. I had not changed since the day I put on the amulet of the Mirrioda. Keesha was still beautiful and just barely showing her age. She also took really good care of herself. We were still inseparable and profoundly in love. The beings of the galaxy rarely thought of me without thinking of Keesha. They loved both of us and we visited all of them, answering their questions, sharing our thoughts and ideas, and showing them that all the creatures of this galaxy could coexist with mutual compassion, tolerance, and respect.
Speaking of tolerance and mutual respect, the people of the Terrain Alliance were getting along very well. When they arrived on their planets, they were all rendered equal, because all of them arrived with little more than the clothes on their backs. The money of various denominations from various countries was rendered useless. They were provided equal accommodations, food, and water regardless of their prior social standing, or level of education. The people, as people will always do, congregated together in groups based on ethnic backgrounds, languages, and common interests. They didn’t completely segregate from each other, but the segregation was obvious.
Fortunately, due to the even ground that everyone started off on, and the quick intervention provided by technology that kept them on relatively even ground, all the people benefited and grew closer sociologically. All the planets were started off with a democratic government, so those overachievers in the crowd could get rewarded for their achievements. By this time all the people of the Terrain Alliance and the rest of the beings of the galaxy realized democratic republics are best suited for eliciting achievement and advancement. Those who excel deserve more than those that simply muddle through. That was a universal fact that was gradually being understood and set into practice by most of the members of my Empire.
By this time, the entire galaxy had been explored. Sixty-two space flight capable sapient species had been discovered, and all, realizing the potential economic advantages, eventually joined the Terreus Empire. The 12% of the galaxy that remained unexplored, after the Junock war, was subsequently explored by the Dux and the Zeelock in a systematic convergent trajectory of thorough and complete exploration.
Only one sapient life form was located, but several habitable worlds in various stages of planetary evolution were found. The sapient life forms of the planet Aethiops, as they referred to themselves, were the Trux. The Trux of Aethiops were almost identical to the native African Maasi of Earth concerning their early development, and their skin tone was almost universal, dark brown skin, but they had the facial features and the straight, dark brown to black hair of the American Plains Indians. The men and women both averaged about 7 feet tall.
The biggest difference in the Trux as compared to Humans was shorter torsos and longer legs. This was an adaptive feature of their species due to their environment and diet. They lived in a semi-arid environment of tall grassy plains. Trees did not exist, only bushes that rarely reached the height of 8 feet. This forced them to develop long legs and tall stature, but their short torso was due to their diet. They were almost exclusively carnivores, raising vast herds of grazing animals. Carnivores require fewer intestines to process their food than herbivores or omnivores, hence the shorter torso. The planet’s landmasses covered about 70% of its surface and there were several inland seas of saltwater, with several larger than the Dead Sea of Earth. Fortunately for the Trux, there were vast deep freshwater aquifers under their sprawling open plains providing ample fresh drinking water.
The Trux had subsequently developed from their early evolutionary environment to an industrial society with large cities and their ever-present vast herds of grazing animals in set-aside reserves. These beings were just experimenting with space flight at about the level of 1960 Earth. Therefore, they were not set to be contacted for several decades if not centuries with an invitation for induction into the Empire. So since they could not claim anything except their own planet, I proclaimed the entire Milky Way Galaxy to be the Terreus Empire. Finally, the galaxy was united and my Empire was complete. Every planet of the galaxy proclaimed this day, on their respective planetary calendars, as an annual holiday.
Now a new problem had arisen. How would I keep the Dux and Zeelok occupied in a galaxy filled with relative peace and harmony, and with few other places left to explore? Luckily, I had been anticipating this day and had already formulated a plan. The Dux were natural explorers and consummate scientists. Always trying to build on their considerable technology and delve into unexplored technological areas.
The Zeelok, on the other hand, developed technology based on need. They were war-like and developed their technology in much the same way Earth did, in direct relation to conflict and competition, as well as the ever-present curiosity of all sapient species. Most of their technological advances leading to space flight were directly related to conflict. They always had to have the best weapons, shields, and space flight capabilities. So, why shouldn’t I take advantage of each species respective propensities? I got together with the emissaries of the two species and made my proposal.
“I am proposing a contest of epic proportion and importance. The contest is to develop safe efficient intergalactic space flight and communications capabilities. The first species to accomplish this to my satisfaction will become my chief explorers. The winners will be granted first rights to colonization as well as exploration. All technologies found on the worlds with extinct civilizations will belong to the winning species, but the information gathered must be shared with me in frequent reports. The loser will be required to police the Milky Way and will only be allowed to traverse the void between galaxies after all the exploration of the new galaxy has been completed and then they will be expected to colonize and police the newly explored galaxy along with our own. The winners of this competition will also receive my undying gratitude and admiration.”
This proposal sparked the imagination and competitive spirits of both great civilizations, specifically because of the Dux’s unquenchable need to explore and the Zeelok’s need to compete. The contest is afoot. Both camps had excellent scientists. The Dux had the better scientists of the two species, but the Zeelok were tapping into the abandoned technological expertise of the Junock. They had been the most trusted subordinates in the Junock Empire, so they had limited access to the Junock computer systems.
By now though, they had broken every passcode and had full access. The science and technology of the now defunct Junock Empire was impressive. In my opinion, this placed both competing species on even ground and pushing hard toward a breakthrough. This heated competition could last for years or be blown wide open in a matter of weeks. No one knew, but I anticipated that it would take years. Actually, I was counting on it.
