Fear and Aggression (4 page)

Rumor was that the new agency that was being
considered would be a new branch of the military; the ‘Space
Force.’ The media labeled this debate, ‘Star Trek vs. Star Wars.’
Should we boldly go where no man has gone before, as scientists and
ambassadors, or should we create an all-powerful space empire? NASA
vs. Military in space cartoons were all over the political pages
depicting goodly scientists on one side, and warmongers on the
other side.

Either way, the public could not help but
envision alien worlds that would need to be explored or conquered.
Aliens were still on the forefront of many people’s minds. Of
course, rumors abounded about all of these contacts with aliens, or
evidence of life that had been found on all of these commercial
voyages, but that were being covered up by the U.S. Government.
There were a handful of vessels that had disappeared and had not
been heard from, but no hard evidence had ever been shown; many
people were beginning to wonder if life outside of this little
sphere was non-existent.

Science had not given up on the possibility
of intelligent life outside our planet. Though the general public
may have esteemed the space explorations up to that point as
profound, science realized that only the tiniest of samples had
actually been analyzed. So, while the scientists had NASA's ear,
they suggested that a more systematic approach needed to be
undertaken in the search for life outside this planet, but they
also had the attention of the military. Behind closed doors it was
being considered that if intelligent life did exist outside of the
earth’s atmosphere, a military presence would be prudent. So the
environmentalists and liberal scientists were, in large measure, at
least as a catalyst, responsible for a military presence in space:
the Space Force.

Yes, the ire of the international community
was raised when the announcement of the dissolution of NASA and the
formation of the new branch of the military was made. And yes,
damage control was already in full swing, in describing the Space
Force, the new military agency, as merely a technicality. Its
primary purpose would be to perform scientific experiments, to
search for intelligent life elsewhere in the universe, and to
monitor any suspicious activity of other earthly vessels in space.
The bottom line is that it was formed and activated, and that was
all there was to it. Those that didn’t like it had to deal with it.
Drafting was not necessary in filling this new military branch.
Volunteers for military service had not been so high since the
twentieth century.

The family stopped and looked at each other
momentarily. It was not unusual to have visitors, or other
interruptions in the evening. But somehow, no one had envisioned
this special family occasion being interrupted. Roloff arose and
headed through the living room to the front door.

Caryell turned his attention back to his
plate, while Aspiria picked up her fork and poked at her food, but
couldn’t help but listen to what was happening in the other
room.

Roloff was unable to hide his disappointment
when he saw who was at the door. Seryen Olefften was a younger man
than Roloff, a little over forty. He was tall and slender with a
very dark complexion, more gray than olive. He did not have very
attractive features. His eyes were also very dark, and inset
deeply. His left eye and orbit were situated somewhat higher than
the right giving his face an awkward, uncomfortable appearance. He
wore no facial hair, though his face was scarred, likely from bad
adolescent acne. His hair was dark and straight, and he kept it
combed back and to the left.

Seryen could tell that his intrusion was not
received with joy this evening. Seryen had been by to interrupt
Roloff in the evening several times before. He knew that it was
Roloff’s custom to open his door widely, and then quickly and
warmly invite his visitors in. Tonight however, he opened the door
just enough to see whom it was and was dressed much nicer that he
usually would be for an evening at home. The greatest indication of
Roloff's displeasure was that he wore an expression on his face
which seemed to say, “I do hope that this is not important, and
that it will not take long.”

Mr. Olefften was a very serious man, and as
Roloff opened the door to greet him, he had a characteristic stoic
expression on his face. Seryen had always felt awkward when he went
into the Palador home; his demeanor did not match the warm and
friendly atmosphere there. Subconsciously it caused him some stress
as he knocked on the door, trying to prepare himself for the
transition he would have to make. It was, however, doubly awkward
this evening, as he saw Roloff with his serious demeanor and was
unsure how to proceed.

Roloff recovered more quickly; as he opened
the door a little more and smiled, he said, “Come in, my friend.”
Seryen truly was a friend, but his unexpected presence always
indicated a problem or concern. Seryen was a part of the town
council of which Roloff was the head and was dedicated to this
position to the utmost degree. Seryen was the first person thought
of whenever anyone in town had a problem, because he would take it
upon himself willingly and dutifully to help in whatever way
possible. Ironically, he and his wife Prianna were typically the
last people considered when the people in town made invitations for
social occasions.

“
I am sorry for my
intrusion this evening, Mayor Palador,” he said as he entered the
door with his head bent down, his eyes making contact with the
floor. “I would not be here except that…I am afraid that this
matter will require your attention this evening.”

Roloff's heart sank as he heard those words.
He had already resigned himself to this reality, but somehow
hearing it expressed destroyed any hopes left that an evening at
home with his family was possible.

“
Leave the matter a bit;
you must be hungry by now and Aspiria has prepared a marvelous
feast. Come in and share some with us,” said Roloff, not yet
wanting to hear the details of this matter of concern.

The aroma in the air left little doubt as to
the exquisiteness of the feast in the next room. Seryen was hungry,
and even if he were not, he knew from past experience that it would
be futile to refuse Roloff. “Thank you,” he said, and followed
Roloff into the dining area.

As Roloff went to get a plate, cup, and
utensils, Seryen walked over towards the table. Aspiria stood and
with the best smile she could muster and gave Seryen her hand.
Caryell stayed sitting, chewing his most recent bite, but turned
toward Mr. Olefften with a bright smile in his eyes.

“
Mrs. Palador, Caryell,
good evening,” he said formally. Suddenly a look of horror
transformed his face; looking at the table and then at the family
members a terrible realization hit him. “Tonight is Caryell's
special feast! I should have known. I am so sorry to disturb you
this evening,” he said with despair.

Perhaps he should have
known that all the young men Caryell's age were having their
special feast this day in honor of the beginning of their journey
into manhood. He had plenty of time to think as he walked for about
twenty minutes in route to the Paladors’ home. But family matters
where not on his mind. He and Prianna had been married for nearly
twenty years. In the early years of their marriage having children
was on the forefront of their minds. But as time went on, and it
looked increasingly impossible that they would be blessed with
children, he kept his mind off the subject as much as possible, it
being too painful to consider. Rather, he occupied himself and his
thoughts chiefly with civic duties, and kept himself thus so
absorbed as to avoid most reminders of this unpleasant reality. His
wife Prianna, on the other hand, had a much more difficult time
keeping this, her deepest regret, off of her mind. But she also
engaged herself primarily in public service, and did her best to
appear content.
If Prianna had been with
me this afternoon, she would have reminded me,
he thought as he searched for a way to rectify the situation.
“Perhaps, if you could advise me on the matter, I could take care
of this myself,” he said hopefully, but even as he said it, he knew
this was impossible.

“
Perhaps, if you told me
what this is all about first, then we could decide what needs to be
done,” Roloff said cheerfully. “But unless the town is burning to
the ground, we have a few moments to eat.” Roloff handed Aspiria
the plate, and sat down, motioning for Seryen to do the same.
Caryell held out his hand and shook it vigorously. Aspiria handed
him a plate filled generously with the feast, and Seryen
reluctantly took his place.

For a few minutes there was silence around
the table as Seryen began to eat. Aspiria, like most people in
town, found the Olefftens, particularly Seryen, difficult to
associate with. Still, she treated them well, and Aspiria was one
of Prianna’s closest friends. In part this was because the Paladors
were good to everyone, but it was also because she felt more
understood by Aspiria than other women. The Paladors too had a
difficult time in having children, and Caryell was considered a
great blessing.

Mr. Olefften was not Caryell's favorite of
his father’s visitors. Primarily this was because he paid Caryell
very little attention, but also because Caryell could sense his
awkwardness. Even so, Caryell liked him well enough.

“
Thank you, this feast is
delicious,” Seryen said quietly, but still breaking the silence. He
grabbed his drink, and washed down his most recent bite and sat
back a little. “The Lodophins had quite a scare today. Alleff, Mrs.
Lodophin’s youngest son, put a letter opener, all steel, into their
electrical socket. The safeties blew, but not before it gave him
quite a shock. He has pretty good burns on his right hand and leg,
apparently where the charges entered and exited.”

“
Oh, that’s terrible, is
the child alright?” Aspiria interjected with a look of concern on
her face.

“
Alleff has been under Dr.
Benren’s care all afternoon, and he should be just fine. It seems
to have calmed him down, so perhaps he won’t be up to so much
mischief, at least for a little while,” Seryen said with a hint of
a grin.

Bellerie Lodophin was a heavy-set woman in
her mid-thirties. She had five boys, and no girls. Alleff, the
youngest, was four, and the oldest was fourteen. The Lodophin boys
were a wild bunch. If any boys needed a father around, it was these
boys, though they were not much different before their father’s
untimely death three years prior. Mrs. Lodophin was a very
eccentric woman. People in town would say that handling those boys
would drive anyone nuts. She did not hesitate to call on the
school, church, and civic leaders for help whenever the need arose,
and it arose often. Seryen, naturally, was called on quite often,
but unlike others in town, she did not seem to be as concerned as
to whether those whom she called upon for assistance were as
desirous to give that assistance. Her pleas went in every
direction. She was as powerful and manipulative with the leaders of
the community in getting what she wanted as she was inept in
controlling her boys.

Bellerie Lodophin had been left with a very
generous inheritance by her late husband, for which people in town
were generally grateful. She took many trips to the city, unlike
most people in their town of Arkasia. A much-needed respite, by
most accounts. There, she gained an appreciation for the modern
conveniences of life for which electrical power was required, and
which was not available in Arkasia.

She was the first to petition the town
council for electrical power a couple of years ago. Though most
people in town were intrigued by the idea, cost was the major
obstacle. Bellerie offered to donate a section of her land for the
electrical substation to be built upon. Actually, the arrangement
turned out to be more like a leasing of the property. The city’s
electrical company would pay for the line to the substation, and
for half of the cost of the substation. The members of the town
then would only be required to pay for half of the substation, and
the lines to each individual residence.

Ordinarily the council would have simply
decided such matters, as they had the authority to do so, but
because of the cost and radical nature of the endeavor, they chose
to put this issue to a vote of the people. With just over two
thousand adults in the town of Arkasia and the surrounding area,
the vote was 1,604 in favor, and 208 opposed. Within a year the
town was electrified.

Sensing where this discussion was going,
Roloff asked, “How is Mrs. Lodophin doing?”

“
That's just it; she is
threatening to have the substation removed from her property. She
says that she must speak with you immediately. I assured her that
you had not been by because you knew nothing of the incident. I
believe that when she sees that Alleff is alright, and has calmed
down, that she will change her mind. I could go back and tell her
that it is Caryell’s special day, and that you will be by in the
morning.”

“
No, I am sure that she
will be expecting me soon. We had better get going,” Roloff said
while getting up from the table.

Aspiria also arose and said, “Let Mrs.
Lodophin know that I will be by to check on Alleff in the morning.”
She walked over to kiss Roloff goodbye.

“
I will try to not be gone
too long; I hope to be back in time to share some of that cake,”
Roloff said reassuringly. “Caryell, I am sorry to have to leave. I
hope you know what a wonderful son you are, and what a special day
I have enjoyed with you.”