Chapter Eight
Chud-Loo, Freedom Valley
5,018 Year of the Mother.
It seemed to Wod-Jur that Chud-Loo’s entire planetary system conspired against their very existence. A report from the geological survey showed meteorites and perhaps even small asteroids, impacted Chud-Loo regularly. The geologists found many craters existed under the surface of the ever-moving sand in the equatorial desert. And there were no higher life forms anywhere on the surface of the planet. The only vegetation present struggled for survival in sheltered valleys in the mountain ranges.
The Polar Regions had few craters, even taking the two high-latitude oceans into consideration. After the astronomers examined the shapes of the craters, they concluded most, if not all of the impacts, came from bodies originating in the asteroid belt of their system. The impacting bodies had come in on the plane of the planetary ecliptic, thus approaching the polar regions at a shallow angle. The astronomers believed the impact angle was sufficiently obtuse to induce an atmospheric skipping or deflection. They were not sure it was the only reason animal life thrived solely in the polar oceans.
Wod-Jur remembered the disaster of trying to harvest food from the polar oceans. Initially, the fishing vessel caught large amounts of nutrient-rich aquatic life. It was on the second food harvesting expedition, when the vessel was filled with catch, that clawed creatures came out of the ocean in vast numbers, crawling onto the vessel to feed upon the harvest. No one knew what these creatures were; the radio report said there were too many creatures and no way to stop them. They just kept coming and coming until the crew’s weapons ran out of charge.
The crew reported the clawed creatures tore through the polymer structure of the vessel and broke into the cabin where they had sought refuge. The last radio message contained the sound of screams. The icy polar oceans remained a place of mystery and terror.
The astronomers had recently informed Wod-Jur a comet of an unknown size was on course toward Chud-Loo. There were no planetary defenses; all their resources had been dedicated to building infrastructure.
“Get the chief engineer,” Wod-Jur said to the partially ripened female who was his attendant. “Bring him here.”
“Immediately,” she said and hurried out.
“You wanted me?” the chief engineer asked. He wiped his front appendages. He had been working on a heating system cobbled together from spare parts. It hadn’t gone well and he was tired.
“Have you scanned the report by the geo-scientist on the frequency of asteroid impacts on Chud-Loo?”
The chief engineer’s breathing flaps opened. He rarely had time to use the holographic data terminal. Much of his day was spent maintaining equipment necessary for their survival. As for reading, he had other ideas for his spare time. “No. Was I supposed to?”
Wod-Jur ignored his response. “It says asteroids frequently strike Chud-Loo. At one time, some even hit these mountains. It says this valley, in which we live, may have been formed by an asteroid impact. Should another strike here, we would be wiped out. Now a comet is heading toward us, on a collision course.” Wod-Jur waved toward the data terminal as though inviting the chief engineer to scan for himself.
“Are you sure? How big is it?” That news got the chief engineer’s attention. “When will it arrive?”
“Scan the report. It’s all in there. What can we do about it? Can you build a planetary defense system?”
“Well, yes, I suppose so—”
“When can you have it operational?” Wod-Jur again waved toward the data terminal.
The chief engineer activated the terminal and started to scroll through the report. “Ah, now I see—”
“Pay attention. When can you have a defense system ready?”
The chief engineer looked up. “I thought you wanted me to read the report.” His breathing flaps became still.
“Not now, later.” Wod-Jur raised his voice to convey his anger. “Can you build a planetary defense system?”
“Maybe.” The chief engineer stared at him for a moment. “I don’t know. I can build anything within the realm of practical engineering. We do have a copy of such a system from the archives.” He hesitated for a moment. “Yes, I think it’s possible to build. It will take a lot of resources.” His breathing flaps flared slightly.
“Do it.”
“What resources and authority do I have?” the chief engineer said. “Who will obey my instructions without your blessing?”
“It has to be built. Since you need resources, I will approve the requisition. Just get it built as soon as possible.” Wod-Jur said with anger. His breathing flaps opened wide.
“I will need to spend time with the archives to get details of the technology,” said the chief engineer. “Without that, I’m in a dark tunnel. First, authorize supplies for the project.”
“Fine. Just figure out how to provide a planetary defense. A comet is on its way. Now it is your responsibility to provide the defenses. Also, get that Mother-blessed navigational beacon operational, too.” Wod-Jur had the faith of a fanatic that the resources would be found when he gave an order. If the chief engineer failed to find them, he knew it would be the chief engineer’s spines that would be clipped.