Where it all began…
This story began many years before our first scene when one Dignity Manfers, professor of Ancient European History was unable to retrieve his precious book from his locker in the Department of History at the Terran EurCon University. The security lock on the cabinet had again refused to recognize his handprint or his iris.
“Damn these machines,” he cried, “why can’t we be free of these infernal hunks of metal.” He stomped off to attempt to get another lunch since the one in the locker would now have warmed itself and be inedible.
He was a specialist in ancient EuroHistory, especially their forms of government. So much had been lost during the “burning years” when the use of hydrocarbons caused so much of the land to flood. He had searched diligently for information on how each of the political units governed themselves. Now the precious but partial copy of “Understanding the philosophies of governing in the European U…” was locked in a secure box along with his lunch. An attempt at replacing his lunch brought on another burst of temper.
The lunch dispensing robot said he had already gotten his lunch and was not allowed two. If he had forgotten he had drawn one, he should consider being scanned for dementia. The machine considered for a moment, scanned him, and announced it would notify the medical clinic that he would need a screening.
“Damn you, demon machine! My lunch is in the security locker and maintenance can’t get it open.” The soothing voice of the central administration electronic monitor encouraged him to be patient because his blood pressure was rising and that was not good for his physical health. The physician’s assistant would be notified. A text message asked him to return to the Department of History because the room he reserved to record his lecture was not being utilized and he would be fined if he did not appear within a quarter hour. A second message came from the maintenance robot that his locker was functional now. His presence was needed due to the spoiled food in the locker. He would be fined for wasting food. His cry of anguish startled everyone in the food dispensing area.
Later in the day, when he had dealt with the psychological robot, and the physiological robot, and the maintenance robot as well as his chair because he was late to film his class, the idea of the NeoUtopian Society was born.
Manfers loved to visit the holographic demonstration of life before the age of vehicles burning hydrocarbons when there were few machines. The partial book he had discovered contained an excerpt from the writing of one author about an island with the perfect society. It was agrarian, egalitarian, with common ownership of all things. No one was rich and no one was poor. Half of each day was spent on study and intellectual debate and the other working on the farms that sustained them. What if, just what if, he and some like-minded scholars gathered enough funds to claim one of the inhabitable planets being offered by the Galactic Consortium? They could be free of the machines and live a life of intellect and equality. He approached the monthly meeting of the Friends of the Tutor Age with this suggestion. After several adult beverages and hours of argument, they agreed: The NeoUtopians Society had been formed.
Their idea took years to come to fruition. To claim a planet meant they needed at least 10,000 committed colonists, more funds than the group of academics had ever imagined, and a suitable planet. Most of the original men and women had committed their families to the cause before they departed life. Many of the families abandoned the cause, but a core group kept on until finally, over 100 years after they started, they had the funds. An extremely suitable planet had become available.
The GC exploration team called it Higgins World after their captain who had been killed by native sentient beings on the next planet they explored. Freedonia Higgins was a much beloved leader who trusted far too much. She had wanted to name EL435 Sparkle due to its shroud of debris. Their exploration found it to be an ideal spot for a colony that didn’t want to have space travel or much contact with space traffic. The debris that hung suspended around the planet was evaluated. They ruled it was an annoyance but not a serious danger to spaceships but satellites would be impossible. It was not a popular choice for most colony sponsors. The common elements of interstellar life were not possible. The debris meant no satellites, weather prediction and control as well as mass communication were precluded. It had been in GC’s inventory for several years and the settlement requirements were lowered to get it claimed.
The Society advertised for colonists, warning them that this was to be an egalitarian, agrarian settlement, sustainably operated, and with low technology. Any colonists had to join the society and agree to the Charter. They attracted a small but willing group, less than the 10,000 advised by the GC but more than 50% of what was recommended. As was common, GC told them they would share the transport. The Humanos Verdaderos (the Authentic Humans) had a claim on an asteroid belt around the same star as Higgins. They also did not have enough for a full transport. An agreement was reached. The GC Transport left Terran space with a full contingent of colonists, supplies, space miners, and a space station. Most were in stasis sleep for the voyage.
The first offload was to be the NeoUtopians because the transport needed to help get the space station set up and operational. The debris was annoying and much heavier than reported by the exploration team. When the download of the NeoUtopians was almost finished, a huge rock hit and destroyed the attached Humanos’ space station and the transport’s propulsion unit. The ship’s captain shot off a message rocket to Terra and announced the need to abandon the ship. As much equipment and supplies were offloaded as possible. The emergency stranded both the crew and Humanos on the planet much to the dismay of the NeoUtopians. A small space mining tug is rigged to tow the now dangerous wreck into a decreasing solar orbit so it could be destroyed in the system’s star.
Weeks of chaos followed the stranding. Local viruses attacked the settlers killing many. The native wildlife was frequently dangerous and many of the transported animals died after eating the local plants. At first, the groups worked together simply to survive. The NeoUtopians begrudgingly admitted the others must stay for now. The leaders of the Society insisted that the Humanos accept the Charter. To abandon all technology is unthinkable for the highly technical Humanos. They refused to accept the Charter. The Transport crew was also shocked at the idea. As a result, the NeoUtopians offered the Humanos one of the other land masses on the planet until rescue. They agreed and called it Refugio, a refuge. The crew decided to move to the tropical region of the planet anticipating a short vacation before rescue. They jokingly referred to themselves as Grounders, grounded against their will. They called their settlement Port, short for Port-in-a-storm.
As the groups settled and tried to survive, the birth control given during transport wore off. As the planet born children matured, sexual activity among the adolescents revealed psychic abilities. The manifestation of these powers during sexual activity caused changes that were sometimes fatal. Each group handles the psychic powers differently. No rescue comes and as the years pass, the three diverse groups try to survive on a planet that is changing them. It is clear to many that cooperation is needed among the three groups. How will it happen? Who will lead it? Can humankind survive on Higgins World?
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