Solbidyum Wars Saga 4: Too Late for Earth (25 page)

“I expect to see integrated teams develop in all areas on this ship between those from Mars and Luna, and I expect you all to get along.  The causes of your differences that you fought over on Earth are gone and you all are starting out anew as equals in a new life.  It is my hope that you will make it better than your last one.”  Once again, there was applause; this time the Chinese seemed more enthusiastic.

“As I said before, the ship is open for your exploration and enjoyment; the only exceptions will be the bridge and command areas, the hanger bays and some sections of engineering, for now.  There are a number of reasons for this; one is safety, not only for yourselves but for everyone aboard.  Touching the wrong button in Engineering, for example, might evacuate the air from some portion of the ship, resulting in deaths; likewise, for the hangar bay.  There are other sensitive systems that also could be compromised by innocent accidents, and for the sake of safety, these areas will be restricted unless you are accompanied by one of my trained staff.

“Now-- finish your desert and then hang around and sip some wine, walk about the room and introduce yourselves to those you don’t know.  Enjoy yourselves.”

As I sat down the Commodore said, “That was excellent, Tibby, I think you made a good impression.”

“I certainly hope so, there are some that don’t seem as pleased with it as everyone else it would seem.”  I said as I looked in Ming’s direction.

“Are you enjoying your food, Ming?”  I asked as he looked up at me.

“It will suffice, I suppose.  It's hardly the kind of food or attention I am accustomed to.”  He said bitterly.  I had to try to conceal a smirk, for I was sure with the limited rations that were left on the Moon that Ming hadn’t eaten anything this fine since he had fled the Earth, and possibly never in his entire life.  “It is a waste though,” he continued as he looked out at the people in the room, “allowing those who are less than you to partake of finer foods like this.”

“Ahh, but Ming,” I replied, “Everyone in this room is now equal.  I do not consider anyone in this room to be less than myself, nor do I consider anyone to be more, either.”

“We shall see,” Ming said in a reflective tone, “we shall see.”

“First Citizen,” a voice from behind me called, “If I might have a moment of your time.”  I turned to see Doctor Winston Hughes standing behind me.

“Doctor Hughes, isn’t it?”  I said as I tried to recall just what it was he did on Mars-- historian and psychiatrist, I recalled.

“Indeed, it is.  First let me say that we all greatly appreciate what you are doing for us.  Wow, what can I really say, the accommodation you have provided are luxurious beyond our wildest dreams.  My accommodation alone is larger than an area that housed 20 people back on Mars.  And this FOOD!  I’ve never had the likes of anything this good in my life.  If all the food in the Federation is like this, sign me up for citizenship!”

I laughed.  “Well, I’m glad you are enjoying it.  Was there something else you wanted?”

“Actually there is.  I've noticed that you do not have a ship's counselor, psychologist or a psychiatrist on your ship.  With a ship of this size and this many people, who do you go to for help with mental issues and problems?”

I paused for a moment stunned by his question as I had never given it the slightest thought.  “Honestly Doctor, the matter has never come up.”

“Really?  From what I can see and from what you have said, I would think it would be a major concern.”

“How so?”  I asked, perhaps a bit more challenging than I should have.

“Well for one thing, there is a young lady on this ship that I see going about with two swords strapped to her back that doesn’t speak.  Stories I have heard about her certainly indicate she has had a very disturbing life, and it would seem she is struggling with several mental issues."  I choked up and nearly broke into tears when he said it, because I realized that there was indeed a considerable need for someone with the skills to deal with Jenira’s problems. “You’re right, Doctor I hadn’t thought about that.”

“Jenira is not the only one, First Citizen,” he continued.

“Tibby, just call me Tibby, please.”

“Very well Tibby, what about yourself?  From what I hear you have undergone a great number of traumatic and challenging situations ever since you left Earth and they are things that you have no past experiences to draw on to deal with them.  Such situations can lead to metal issues and can cause depression and often result in irrational actions.  Do you feel like you are functioning at your best level mentally and emotionally with all that is happening in your life?”

Sometimes in life situations can creep up on you so slowly that you fail to see things until something slaps you in the face and when it does it takes your breath away.  This was one of those moments for me.  I found myself unconsciously reaching for my chair and easing myself down into it as I felt the impact of his words.

“No, honestly I don’t’.  I haven’t for a long time now, but I don’t think I realized how bad it has gotten until just recently.”

“Good, it’s good that you recognize it, now it’s time to do something about it.”

I looked at him and asked, “What do you recommend?”

He chuckled, “I thought it was obvious.  I want a job.  Ha-ha!  Seriously though, I would consider it a great honor to be able to work for you on this ship as your ship's counselor.  As a licensed psychiatrist, well perhaps my license doesn’t mean anything here, but as a once licensed psychiatrist from Earth, I have the training and experience necessary to deal with matters of this sort.”

I looked at Kala, who had sat silently by me all this time, she reached over and put her hand on my arm and with a smile and watery eyes nodded.

“Very well Doctor, get with Kala and she’ll get you on the payroll and then get with Piesew and the Commodore about having yourself set up with an office to work out of.”

“Thank you Tibby, but as far as an office I would prefer to work out of the suite you have provided me.  There is a small study attached to the room that will work perfectly as an office I think.”

“Very well than Doctor I think we are all set.” I said as I got up out of my chair.

“Ahh not quite,” he said.

“There’s more?”

“Yes, we need to set up an appointment for you.”

“Oh, yeah, I guess.  Let’s see, how about mid-morning tomorrow?  After lunch I want to take a team down to the Earth’s surface and look around.”

“That works for me,” he said.  “Now, what about Jenira?  How do we go about getting her in to see me?”

“Leave that to me doctor,” Kala said.  “Jenira respects and looks up to both Tibby and I and I think if I talk to her she may be willing to come see you.  However, I recommend you use the learning headband to learn the Federation sign Language, Jenira isn’t deaf, but she won’t speak to you other than with sign Language.”

“Thank you Kalana, I’ll take your advice.”

As Kala and I rose from our seats as Doctor Hughes walked away I noted Ming sitting with a devious smile on his face as he stared at me and I shuddered, I was wondering what evil thought was going through his mind.

I expected my first session with Dr. Hughes to be one going through all my adventures since leaving Earth and having me try to resolve any issues I might have about the outcomes, but I was wrong.  Instead, he gave me a series of tests, many I recognized as aptitude and IQ tests that I had taken in the past back on Earth in school and again in the navy.  I was surprised that he had these tests as they didn’t exist, that I knew of, in the Federation and I never would have thought they had them at the Martian colony.  I commented about it and his answer was a real revelation to me.

“We have copies of all the records, books, photos, magazines and other documents from Earth, Tibby.  I’m surprised no one told you.  Years ago, before we even started the Mars colony, NASA had determined that it would be wise for all of Earth's knowledge to be stored in a data cube and sent on the mission with the colonists.  I have access to every book ever written and in the Library of Congress, all the books stored in the Smithsonian, the books and records of the British Academy of Science, every TV broadcast ever recorder, medical books and references all stored in a single data cube. “He held up a small clear glasslike cube about an inch square so that I could see it.  All the members of the Mars crew have a copy.

“Wow!  Everything is in there?  Are there even plans for buildings and other things like machines as well?”  I asked in amazement.

“If drawings still existed anywhere they were converted and placed in the data cubes.  I found old construction plans for wood hull ships built by one ship yard in Virginia that are complete in every detail.  You could take and build an exact replica of it if you wished just using those plans.  The works of Plato, Mark Twain, and Jules Verne are in there as is the Magna Carta, and the Constitution of the United States.”

My mind was still reeling as I started the tests but quickly found myself focusing on the questions in the tests.  Before I knew it an hour had elapsed and Dr. Hughes reminded me that I was planning to go to the surface and it was nearly noon.  I left his suite wondering what he would garner out of the test he’d given me and wondering also how he would make out when he gave Jenira the same tests.

For our trip to the surface we used one of our larger troop transport ships.  These would be comparable to marine landing craft from back in my days on Earth in that it consisted mostly of long craft with 4 rows of the bench like seats running the length of the craft, one row of seats attached along walls of the craft and two rows back to back down the center.  Each craft was capable of holding about 30 men in full gear, including the pilot and copilot.  In our case, we only had two armed troopers with us all the rest of the team were scientists, either from my own crew or that of the Chinese or Mars colony.  Marranalis and members of my security team had spent time going over the aspects of the space suits each of us wore.

The suits were necessary because of all the sulphur that has been introduced into the atmosphere by the volcanoes created after the asteroid impact.  The sulphur had combined with the hydrogen and other chemicals in the atmosphere creating a sulfuric acid rich atmosphere that was deadly to anyone who might breathe it.  As we entered the atmosphere, Marranalis instructed our pilot to circle the impact crater area over what had once been China.  Inside the transport, we watched in a vid screen located on the back wall the scene outside.  Most of what had once been China now was an ocean.  In the center of the crater an island existed, possibly the remains of the asteroid, though I really don’t know for sure.  From there we headed west, rising over a mountain range on the western edge of the crater.  The mountains must have been pushed up by the asteroid impact, and it stood taller than any mountain on Earth had ever stood, going up to an elevation of nearly 14km.  All along the rim of the crater and extending away from it volcanoes could be seen erupting and spewing smoke and ash into the air.  On the ground, where we could see through the smoke and clouds, rivers of gold and red lava streamed.  Some of the scientists spoke excitedly about what they were seeing with others sat and stared in shock as the visage displayed on the screens.

“Is there nothing left at all of China?”  One of the women asked.

“It would seem not,” Doctor Yamaguchi replied with a note of sadness.  “My Japan is gone also.”

As we continued to fly west, the extent of the upheaval and shock waves generated by the impact became more apparent.  Wave like ridges appeared extending all the way to the Black Sea and Eastern Europe.  No signs of any towns or structures were visible as they had been pulverized and ground up by violent the geological upheavals and shifts of surface structure.  The Caspian and Black Seas had been compressed and the flow from them into the Mediterranean now appeared many times wider.  The Mediterranean itself seemed much larger and suddenly I realized that what I was seeing was the result of the Earth’s Oceans having been raised in elevation.  Most of the islands that had been in the Mediterranean were gone.  Italy no longer looked like a boot but rather was just a long skinny finger sticking out into the sea. On the other side of the Mediterranean the coast had been moved far inland and any coastal cities that had existed there were now under water.

As we approached the region of the Alps, we began to see our first signs of the cities and towns where people had once lived.  They were all dark and at first it was hard to recognize them as they were blanketed with gray ash from all the volcanic action.

“See if we can locate Paris,” Doctor Yamaguchi  said.

Marranalis replied, “What the hell is Paris, how am I to know where to look?”

“Here, let me try to help,” Yamaguchi said.  “There!   See that river, I think it’s the Seine river, follow it.  THERE!  That’s it, I think.  Hard to tell with all the ash.  YES, yes that’s it, there you can see what’s left of the Eiffel Tower!”

On the vid screen, all I could see was a vast plain of grey with rectangular outlines and shadows of what I assumed to be streets and collapsed building. Then I saw a rectangular mass of twisted steel that I assume must be what Doctor Yamaguchi was seeing.”

“I see it.  Marranalis see if you can find an area large enough for the ship to set down near there and take us down.  Be careful though with all that ash it’s hard to tell what’s under it.”