HOPE: THREE STAR SYSTEMS AWAY
The freshly pungent odor of human sweat was everywhere inside the Rover Base Gymnasium. Delly and her classmates, a group of ten in total and all between the ages of seventeen and eighteen, were doing diamond pushups under the watchful eye of their instructor, Pete Biancuzzo.
Coach B, as he was affectionately known to his students was a bold man with an infectious smile. He was in his fifties, yet he remained a fit athlete. His arms were ripped, even at his age. He also was balding something fierce as the follicles on the sides of his head were almost totally gone and noticeably gray. It never made sense why he didn’t just shave them off.
He paced back and forth, watching the students’ form and technique. A whistle dangled around his neck. Coach B wasn’t too dissimilar from Marius in his tough-minded approach, possibly with the exception that he had dealt with a more mature group of teenagers than his colleague. When it came to education of the Rover Base youth, discipline and accountability were the constants. It was frustrating for the young people no doubt, but such was life.
Coach B continued to watch the group—at present they showed no signs of fatigue. His students were well-oiled machines. He stopped pacing, pressed the whistle up against his lips and blew. Instantly, his students jumped to their feet.
“Well done… Now we climb.”
He gestured to the rope climb area at the far end of the gym where three ropes hung from the ceiling over some thin floor mats that offered little to no protection at all. If anyone ever fell, they would spend many days in the infirmary. Delly led the others as they hustled over to the mats. The students all stood by the ropes, waiting for Coach B, separated into two groups of five. They left the middle rope free for their instructor.
Coach B filled the space, removing his whistle.
“Hold this for me.”
He handed the whistle to Delly’s boyfriend and Jovan’s older brother, Kristian. A few months’ shy of his eighteenth birthday, Kristian was not the athlete his younger brother was, but he held his own all the same. He made up for whatever he lacked in physical prowess by outworking the competition. He also was great with his hands. Delly had experienced that up close and personal.
Coach B grabbed the middle rope. His hands were hardened and full of callouses, yet they were strong. Coach B closed his eyes, engaging in a silent count of two and in an instant, began climbing the rope. His students cheered him on as he reached the top, tapping it twice while keeping himself perfectly balanced at the apex. He then smoothly slid back down the rope, landing on the floor like a cat. He did that which such ease. Delly always wondered how he never got rope burn.
“Ah, woo. That was good. I told you the old guy still has it… a bit.”
He was breathing a little heavy, but still fired up all the same. He looked at his students who were ready to compete against one another—this was the environment he had fostered. Iron sharpening iron.
“Alright cadets, first group, you’re up.”
Coach B stuck out his hand as Kristian passed him his whistle. He stepped aside as three of his students, including Delly, stepped forward. The other two were boys as was per usual in Coach B’s class. Other than one girl named Shaw, whom he taught well over a decade ago, Coach B’s classes were always filled with teenage boys. Delly was literally breaking all the rules. Delly and her classmates were ready, focused and hungry to win the approval of their intense instructor.
“You don’t stop until you hear the whistle, am I clear?”
Silence from his students. There was no time for talk. It was time to win.
“Alright, in five, four, three, two…”
The whistle blew as the teens hit the rope, climbing as fast as they could. At first, Delly trailed the two boys, but it didn't take long for her to make up ground. She reached the top just split seconds behind them. She tapped the ceiling and began her descent breathing down their necks.
They were not allowed to slide down the rope as Coach B had done. They always went down as they came up, one full body length at a time. Delly reached the ground first as she was shorter than the boys. Her movements were more crisp and compact. She immediately began to re-climb the rope as the two boys reached the floor split seconds later. They turned to Coach B with confused looks.
Coach B shrugged.
“Did you hear a whistle?”
Back up they went, now trying to catch up to Delly, who had built a sizable lead on them. Coach B smiled. It was nice having someone like her in the group. She pushed them to compete harder.
<>
General William Aresco brought the steaming hot cup of tea to his lips. The current leader of the Rover Base, Aresco was a forthright man with leathery skin. Like his predecessors before him, he was worn down mostly by the prolonged search for a new home. When he assumed the position, there was chatter of how much things would change under his stewardship and yet here he was, old, drained, standing in exactly the same place he was when he was first given this tremendous responsibility.
Aresco gave a gentle blow to the cup to cool it off. His accommodations were the finest on the Rover Base. The walls of his sitting room were reinforced transparent plexiglass, allowing him to watch the stars every night before bed. A plush couch stood nearby, good for a nap or entertaining, albeit he hadn’t done much of the latter for quite some time. He was content to remain here, alone in his thoughts, slowly waiting for the end to come.
Perhaps there will be someone else in the leadership ranks who will one-day step forward to do what I wasn’t able to do.
A fleeting thought, as Aresco had no intention of willingly giving up the leadership. If someone wanted his job or this view, they would have to wait until he died, as far as he was concerned. He stood next to the window, cup in hand. From his perch, he could see the Grey Rover on approach towards the Rover Base. He took a sip, smiling fondly—it had been years since he traveled in one of those. An alert on his computer pinged as Aresco turned to his workstation. He approached his desk, setting the cup down.
He touched the monitor display to wake it up. A group notification had been sent out to all members of the leadership council:
‘Urgent. War Room. One Hour. Respectfully, Major Thayer.’
Aresco rubbed his chin, his mind racing in all directions. Considering who sent the message, this could have been any number of scenarios.
<>
The corridor was uncomfortably warm, Galicia’s rays were hitting the tall plexiglass windows, turning it into a hot box. Aresco had begun to sweat around his head and neck, even on the short trek from his quarters to the War Room. No matter how much they turned up their air conditioning to counteract the heat, it was still hot.
Aresco was escorted by two baby-faced base officers. They looked barely old enough to drink, let alone do their jobs protecting the leadership council and their families just in case the unthinkable were to happen and there was a mutiny.
Luckily or unluckily, depending on which way someone might look at it, the community at large didn’t have the stomach to fight for a regime change anyway. Not everyone was built to lead and many had become understandably world weary.
Aresco reached the door, stopped and waited. The officer to his left stepped forward, putting his left handprint up against a control panel. The panel scanned the print. His identification was a match. The officer to his right did the exact same thing only with his right hand. A moment later, the war room door slid open.
“Wait here.”
Aresco’s officers nodded as he disappeared inside.
<>
Standing around a long glass conference table were the other eight members of the Rover Base’s leadership council led by Aresco’s second-in-command, Major Fawn Hurley. Hurley had several moles on her face, her skin was almost as weathered as Aresco’s. Time had not been kind to her. She always held a pen in her hand, constantly rolling it against her fingertips. No matter where they were or what the situation called for, she never appeared comfortable—which was exactly why Aresco made her his number two. She wasn’t a legitimate threat to his leadership.
The rest of his council also included Thayer, Captain Derrick Moore, and Major Ian Shimizu. Shimizu was a duplicitous individual who most certainly could never be trusted, but more importantly, he was fiercely loyal to Aresco and that was all that mattered. He currently ran logistics out of Prisca for the Rover Base.
Thayer’s apprentice, Toni, stood behind her. Although she attempted to be inconspicuous, hovering in the back-ground, her height made it a futile exercise. She was a sight to behold, dwarfing several of the men in the room. Aresco scanned the table. Everyone, other than Thayer, had looks of inquiry on their faces. They seemed just as in the dark as he was.
“Okay Ananke, the floor is yours.”
Aresco took a seat, while the rest of the council sans Thayer, followed his lead. Toni sat as well.
“Thank you, sir.”
Thayer cleared her throat, activating the table which turned into a visual hologram of the Galicia star system, the Rover Base and lastly, three other unknown star systems, each with their own grouping of planets. Aresco and a few others of the leadership council perked up—this wasn’t what they were expecting at all.
“As many of you are aware, about a year ago, we sent remote Rovers to the following neighboring star systems, which we have since named. Marilia, Ogun and Heru.”
As she named them, the stars displayed their physical distance from the current position of the Rover Base. They immediately stood out as different from Galicia in that they were much smaller in size, being more akin to the size of the earth’s Sun.
“Codenamed Project Pioneer, there was little reason to believe that they would actually find a suitable planet for human colonization.”
Shimizu rolled his eyes to the ceiling.
“Here we go. DC in full effect. Didn’t even make it a full minute before you threw water all over it.”
Aresco shot him a look of displeasure and Shimizu looked away, turning his attention back to Thayer.
Thayer appeared to shake off the ridicule and went on with her presentation. She moved from the diagrams to a collage of pictures taken in the newly discovered star systems. The photos revealed at least thirty planets, all in different colors, vibrant and bright.
“Now, the images our rovers have sent back, as you can imagine, are awe inspiring. Within those three systems, exists, what we believe may be seven different planets suitable for human life.”
“I’m sorry, did you just say seven?” Hurley asked.
The council members shifted in their seats as they whispered among themselves. They all seemed to be trying to wrap their heads around that specific number. Had she said one or two, that would be one thing, but seven planets would be beyond a miracle. If she were right, they could build an empire. However, it did begin to call into question the validity of Thayer’s research.
“Yes, although that's just at first glance.”
Thayer scrolled through more photos, isolating the seven planets on the display. From the images, many of them resembled the Earth, three of which appeared larger in size, while the remaining four were roughly the same.
“Unfortunately, our remotes are only capable of flybys, not actual exploration, which is why…” Thayer turned to Aresco, “it is my recommendation that we put together an expedition, actual human-led Rover teams to explore these three-star systems and those seven planets specifically.”
Thayer’s proposal caused an immediate shockwave. More murmuring around the table ensued as Aresco processed the information.
Who would be sent out on these expeditions? Who would be tasked with leading one? What did that mean for the families here on board the Rover Base?
As the leader of the community, these were questions he would have to answer. Shimizu leaned forward.
“Do we even have the man-power for such an operation? You’re talking about them traveling millions of miles in space without the Rover Base. Something we haven’t done in a generation.”
“I’m aware of that Major. And to answer your question, yes, we do have the manpower—if we send some of our cadets.”
“Our cadets?” Captain Moore spoke up. “The vast majority of whom can’t even drink? And you want to send them out to some unknown system of planets? That’s ludicrous Ananke! And no one in this room knows that better than I do. They don’t belong out there.”
Thayer glared across the table.
“That’s Major Thayer, Captain Moore.”
The captain held up his hand in a gesture of apology as Thayer looked around the room.
“And pardon my tone, but what else do you all propose? Us just sitting up here forever, floating around, waiting for the end to come? What was the point of training them for exploration if they never explore anything? Just to give them something to do? ‘Cause I can assure you, there are a lot of people up here who are bored and would kill for something new and exciting.”
Aresco’s hands were clasped in front of him as he contemplated Thayer’s observations. Her points were almost too valid to ignore.
“The fact remains, we have to look for a new home and this particular system, doesn't have enough freshwater to sustain any type of colony. Nothing long-term anyway.”
“That’s not the point Major. You’re talking about our children here. It’s different. You don’t have any, so how would you know?”
Captain Moore was once again unable to control his emotions on the matter.
“Enough.”
A forceful tenor from Aresco before Thayer had a chance to defend herself against the accurate yet hurtful comments. Everyone turned their attention to the head of the table as Aresco leaned forward. He took a look around the table at his council, gauging their eyes and body language. From what he saw, there wasn’t a consensus here.
Some were ready to attempt something new, while others preferred the status quo, primarily because they were afraid for what Thayer’s plan would do to their families no doubt. This was a risk not everyone was so eager to take, especially when it hit this close to home. Aresco unclasped his hands.
“Perhaps, it would be best for all of us if we table this discussion for the time being and move on to other things. Agreed?”
Silence abounded as they all knew this was more of an order than a request. Thayer took a seat, frustrated, turning off the hologram display. Aresco turned his attention to Shimizu.
“Alright then, where are we on the mining?”
Shimizu stuck out his chin, smiling broadly.
“Smooth sailing on that front, sir. The Grey Rover just returned from Prisca and the mining crews seem to be in good health across the board. While that planet may not be suitable for habitation, it's natural resources have proven to be a godsend.”
“Excellent. Keep us updated Ian.”
Shimizu nodded and shot a wink in Thayer’s direction. Aresco chose to ignore it.
<>
The aroma of potatoes, with just a hint of pepper, filled the air. A pot of stew was boiling on the electric stove as Orion’s mother put on a pair of oven mitts. She opened the oven, pulling out a tray of fluffy, golden brown homemade biscuits.
She placed the biscuits on the counter behind her next to a big salad bowl, before turning her attention back to the stove. In the adjoining family room, a table had been set. This table was just a little bit larger than the one in the kitchen. Their mother tended to make them sit here for special occasions, although none of the children were quite sure what was so special about tonight.
Orion was seated at the table, off in his own world, thinking, almost as if he were talking to himself. Delly entered the room. She quizzically looked at him for a few moments. She checked to make sure their mother wasn’t watching before she punched him in the shoulder and ran. Orion sprang to his feet, chasing after her. He caught up to her in the next room.
“Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry.”
Delly put her hands in the prayer position, turning around to face him. Every time he was going to retaliate for her hitting him, she did that. She had built up hundreds of punches through the years and he always caved as soon as she said sorry. He had never gotten her back once. All he needed was one good crack and he knew she would stop once and for all.
Orion turned to see Pharaoh standing in front of the wall with his back to them, wearing a VR helmet. He was making all kinds of physical moves. He must be playing a video game.
“Did you guys wash your hands?” Their mother’s voice called from the next room.
“Yes.”
“No.”
Delly tried drowning out Orion’s voice as he shot her a menacing look. She gleaned over her shoulder and returned a smirk while she approached Pharaoh, reaching over top of him to remove his headset.
“Hey!”
“Sorry squirt. It’s dinner time.”
Delly took his headset, setting it down. She then tickled their baby brother as he hurried to the table to grab a seat and get away. Their mother entered the room pushing a rolling cart with their dinner neatly prepared on it. Her presentation was lovely as she began putting the food on the table.
“What are we having?”
Delly unfurled a napkin to rest in her lap.
“Potato soup, salad and biscuits.”
“Oh my God, Mom. Again?!”
To say that Delly was ready for some variety in her diet would be an understatement. Orion shared her sentiments. Pharaoh reached for a biscuit. Their mother gently tapped his hand, causing him to pull it back. Soup and salad first, she didn’t want him filling up on bread.
“You act like I make potato soup all the time.”
Their mother was fixing Pharaoh’s bowl, using a ladle to pour some soup in it. If she had the ability to make other types of meals, Orion was sure she probably would, but she could only work with what she had been given on the Rover Base.
Delly threw her hands up, “that’s because we’re always eating it.”
“Well, last I checked, your legs still work, so if you wanna go in there and whip us up some dinner, I’d be delighted.”
“Bet.”
Delly tapped the table; she was beginning to hover.
“Sit down.”
Their mother pointed as Delly parked her butt right back down. Orion puts some salad on his plate, was surprisingly enjoying watching the two of them go at it. Delly was becoming more and more independent with each passing day. He chose to remain quiet instead, continuing his recent pattern of flying under the radar. Maybe if they never noticed him, they wouldn’t keep asking him how he was feeling.
Delly continued making a mockery of dinner, by over-exaggerating her blowing of the hot soup. Their mother was watching her with a frown. She was about six seconds from giving Delly a piece of her mind.
“Mommy, where’s Daddy?”
Pharaoh had stopped eating as Orion and his sister looked at one another. It was rare for them to have dinner without their father present.
“He’s in a meeting sweetie.”
Their mother pointed at Pharaoh’s soup bowl with her spoon, then to her mouth, while rubbing her belly. This was her attempt to re-focus him on the task at hand, finishing his dinner.
“Yeah, didn't you hear Pharaoh? Word going around the base is that they just discovered some new planets.” Delly smiled with her mouth full of biscuit.
“Really?” Pharaoh gleamed.
“Uh huh. And chances are they're gonna need some of us to go check it out.”
Delly revealed a wide devilish grin, just saying those words her eyes lit up. She was downright giddy.
“I wanna go.”
Delly turned to Pharaoh, looking him square in the eyes. “Aww, sorry kiddo, you're way too young for that, but I on the other hand, am top of my class. So you just know they gotta take me. We all know it’s my destiny to be an explorer.”
Orion rolled his eyes. No one loved Delly more than Delly loved Delly.
“That’s not fair.” Pharaoh sucked his teeth and pouted.
“I know, that's why it's so important to do well in school little man, so you can do all the fun stuff too.” Delly playfully rubbed his head.
Their mother was staring at her so hard now. She really was making a mockery of their family dinner, yet their mother still wasn’t doing or saying anything. She was showing Delly preferential treatment, which she always told Orion didn’t exist in their family.
“Delly, while I appreciate your interest in your brother's education, I'd prefer you not filling his head up with nonsense, so please stop talking and eat your food.”
Their mother was clearly fed up with Delly, yet for some reason she remained calm. Orion waited patiently for her to yell at Delly and yet that was all she would say. This was so disappointing. Delly was being a pain in the ass and there would be no repercussions. She always got away with murder in this house.
Maybe their mother knew something the rest of the family didn’t. Was that why Dad hadn’t come home yet? Could he be leaving them to explore these unknown planets?
“Anything for you mother dearest.”
Delly dug her spoon into the soup, lifting some out, blowing on it way too many times before finally slurping it. She looked at Pharaoh, gesturing for him to join in her tomfoolery. Pharaoh lifted his spoon, began copying her.
Their mother sighed, shaking her head. She snatched the spoon out of Pharaoh’s hand, slamming it down on the table which surprised the three children. She immediately got up from the table, left the room to her bedroom.
Orion resumed eating his dinner, this was not his fight. The mood was no longer playful as Pharaoh and Delly just sat there, they were still in shock. For as mature as Delly liked to believe she was, she most certainly had the ability to be even more juvenile than Pharaoh on his worst day.
<>
Orion and Pharaoh stood side by side in front of the bathroom mirror in their pajamas. Their mouths closed yet contorted, the blue glow emanating from it would be a dead giveaway. Orion opened his mouth revealing a black self-cleaning electric mouthguard covering both the top and bottom teeth. Disposal toothbrushes were a thing of the past.
Orion removed the mouthguard, it was drenched in saliva and cleaning solution, gross. Pharaoh watched him as he spit out the cleaning solution. The automatic faucet sensor turned on, rinsing out the sink. He placed the mouthguard under the water for a few seconds getting all of the solution off before returning it to its holder.
“Alright boys, time for bed.”
Their mother called out as Orion turned to see her waiting just outside the door. Pharaoh removed his mouthguard, it was even more disgusting than Orion’s as he admired it for a moment, holding it up to see his saliva and solution slowly descend into the sink.
“Ugh, don’t do that.” Said a grossed-out Orion.
He nudged Pharaoh with his hips. His little brother got the message, began rinsing off his mouthguard as Orion had done moments before. Orion entered their room to see their mother standing near Pharaoh’s pod. She looked at him giving him a warm inviting smile.
“Look Mom, I’m all clean.”
Pharaoh raced into the room next, running straight for her, giving her the biggest hug around her waist.
“I can see that Ro.” She returned his affection with a deep embrace and a kiss on the top of his head. “Ready for bed?”
“Yup.” He released his embrace before hopping into his pod. She put a blanket over him. “Mommy, are we gonna find a new home soon? I mean a planet.”
Their mother paused a moment, such a direct question from Pharaoh out of nowhere. He was absorbing information so quickly. She gave Pharaoh a glowing smile as she massaged his head. She bent down, kissing him again, this time on his forehead.
“Yes, I believe we will.”
“Cool. I can’t wait to actually go outside.”
“Me too sweetheart. Me too.” She grabbed the top of his stasis pod. “Now you sleep tight. Don’t let the bed bugs bite.”
“I won’t.”
Pharaoh yawned as their mother chuckled. If only she could bottle these moments forever, while forgetting about this evening’s dinner. She closed his pod, locking it for the night. She checked the timer on his pod, which read 7:25am when he was to awake. She looked up from Pharaoh’s pod, noticing Orion’s was still open, he was in bed just staring up at the ceiling.
“I figured you didn’t need my help anymore.”
“I don’t. I can do it myself.”
Orion remained focused on the ceiling. Their mother walked around Pharaoh’s pod to where he could see her.
“Is everything alright? You barely said a word at dinner. This is becoming a habit with you.”
She seemed to take a lot of pride in being worried all the time, like she had forgotten what it was like to be a kid.
“Kind of hard to speak when Delly does all the talking.”
She smiled, almost laughed, but she always refused to engage in any ridicule of her children, even if Orion hoped she would laugh just once.
“But I’m fine, seriously. Just another long day in the simulator, that’s all.”
She nodded. It was doubtful that she totally believed him, but if he said he’s fine, then she had to take him at his word.
“Okay. Well, if you ever wanna talk about it, I’m always around.”
“I know. Good night Mom.” Orion half-smiled, he was ready to be left alone. She got the hint and headed for the exit. She shut off the lights on her way out. Orion watched as she closed the door. The night lights turned on as he sat there alone, in mostly darkness.
<>
Derrick sat exhausted on the couch in the family room. He loosened the top button on his uniform and leaned his head back. Carolyn entered the room with two mugs of coffee. She set a mug down in front of him. He grabbed it, bringing it to his nose, soaking in the aroma. It was black, just the way he liked it.
“So which way do you think he’s leaning?” Carolyn sat with her mug, adjacent to him.
“I haven’t the slightest idea. But it doesn’t take a genius to realize that we can’t stay out here, in the middle of nowhere, forever. At some point, we’re gonna have to find a home. If for nothing else, for our children.”
He took a sip of coffee and looked into his wife’s eyes. It was nice having something to take the edge off.
<>
Orion was curled up on the floor in the hallway, just outside his bedroom. He was eavesdropping on his parents’ conversation. He quietly rocked back and forth, not wanting to make a sound.
“You know Delly’s just chomping at the bit to be on one of those Rover teams.” His mother said.
“That doesn’t surprise me in the least.”
“‘Cause she takes after you?”
“‘Cause… if Aresco gives a greenlight, she's more than likely gonna be on one of those ships, whether we like it or not. And as much as I worry about that happening, for all intents and purposes, she’s an adult now. It’s not our decision to make.” Orion’s father swallowed. He appeared to be care-fully choosing his words. “All I could do in that scenario is be supportive of her. And be her dad.”
Orion heard his mother emit a long sigh.
“Yeah. Well, I guess we’ll just have to cross that bridge when we come to it.”
“Exactly.”
Orion remained seated on the floor just outside his room. He began wiping away tears of his own. Even though he understood that this was potentially the greatest news they ever could have received, all he could think about in this moment was how would he cope with the knowledge that his big sister, the one who lived to torment him, might no longer be around to give him grief and laughs. He would really miss the laughs. At least for the foreseeable future.
He sobbed in silence as this was a reality he was not yet ready to face.