The Captain understood. She had gone through a lot being the mother of a mutant. She took good care of the boy while he had been away, and used the hologram technology he gave her religiously to keep the deformities of her son a well-kept secret. The Captain had only been expected to be gone for ten Nephrican years, but then his experimental ship blew up. Adma had been privately schooled, and had grown up living amongst the rumor around the neighborhood that he had been retarded. To his mother and Captain Mynervood’s surprise however, the boy had never been any trouble, or in any way handicapped. In fact Adma seemed to be superior to average Nephricans in every way.
After they drove off, Hagan went back inside to look out of one of the house’s windows. She watched the house across the street in anticipation of something. Then from out of the house came the Negolim who she knew were a stakeout setup in anticipation of Captain Mynervood’s return. She had become annoyed at the nosey government of Nephrica. She hated them, but what can you do? The Negolim agents got into a vehicle obviously to follow Captain Mynervood down the street. She knew the Captain would be aware of them and give them the slip at least just for the sport of it since evading government surveillance had been, after all, futile on the planet Nephrica.
* * *
All this happened very long ago during a period of the galaxy’s history known as the 2nd age of Magphoreus. This story takes place when life as we know it finally began to evolve within habitable zones where the 1st Age cycles of chaos and destruction had either been left behind in peaceful orbits, or been annihilated. In the second age the galaxy had been a devourer of the surrounding galaxies along with globular clusters of stars that orbit the mighty Magphoreus even to this day. In these other galaxies that orbited Magphoreus the cycles of chaos and destruction had since subsided long before the post-Quasar Age mighty Magphoreus eventually became tamed by habitability. Therefore life as we know it had been more successful in the surrounding galaxies. It had been during this time, early in the 2nd age, when Magphoreus devoured a certain globular cluster around the spiral galactic arm known in this day and age as Carina. This cluster of stars broke apart into smaller clusters of stars. That had been where and when the cluster of the legendary 15 stars had found their way into the arms of the mighty Magphoreus.
Intelligent terrestrial life had evolved on planets around three of the cluster’s 15 stars. Those intelligent species of life were the Nephricans from the star Ea, the Pripicans of the star Poa, and the Doldorians of the star Dol. The Nephricans had only one eye and a tripod walking strategy that involved three tentacle-like feet, and two-fingered hands with opposable thumbs. The Pripicans were furry beings with four legs and two very human-like arms that had three instead of four fingers along with opposable thumbs. The Doldorians were blue with two legs that extended from the sides of a round exoskeleton covered body. They had two arms and spider-like mandibles around their mouths. Nephricans tended to be goal-oriented, militaristic, and war-like. Pripicans were music lovers, creative, and peace loving. Doldorians were technologically hundreds of years behind Nephricans and Pripicans when these intelligent life forms first began visiting each other.
Long before the establishment of Nephapricus, about four billion seven hundred million or so years ago, the pre-humanoid life forms called Pripicans first picked up radio and digital signals from the star Ea. The inquisitive Pripicans of the star Poa then began sending transmissions across the 1.6 light-years to the star Ea in order to establish contact. Eventually a dialogue actually became established, which inspired optimism for the future amongst the Pripican culture that had already realized they were not alone. The Nephrican culture however, took the knowledge of intelligent life out there with more intimidation. Once radio communication became established Nephricans indulged nuclear technologies with the intention to prove the superior species in space travel.
After about a thousand Earth years of strictly radio communication between the Nephricans and the Pripicans, the Nephricans developed ships that could accelerate up to ten million miles per hour. This made the journey take a bit less than 40 Earth years. Earlier robot scouting missions concluded that the Pripicans had a simple culture of monolithic stone architecture. Pripicans actually used non-linear resonance of sound and light frequencies to move enormous stones in the construction of their architecture. This focus on resonance would lead the science of Pripican culture to evolve quantum technologies that would program the very stuff of reality.
The Nephricans eventually improved ship speed up to 25,000,000 mph and sent nuclear ships with nuclear weaponry across the void for 15 years in order to conquer the Pripican culture. The Pripicans, on the other hand, were more cautious with nuclear technologies, and established a culture of unlimited energy based on low energy nuclear reactions that separated electrons and neutrons from hydrogen in the element nickel with nano-scale magnetic fields. That produced a kind of nuclear fuel, which gave off no harmful radiation. That gave the Pripicans the technological advantage to defend the home front from hostile ships that were just a long way from home. During this Great War Nephricans first developed the physics and technology for .6 times the speed of light hyper-acceleration space travel.
Pripicans did not retaliate in the first war, and they proved to be the stronger and wiser species. The peace that followed became the beginnings of the galactic culture called Nephapricus, and faster ships began exploring other stars. Nephricans and Pripicans began to share cultures although it would not be the last war between Nephrican and Pripican. Nephricans of the star Ea expanded the 1.6 light years to Poa, followed eventually by colonies 2 light years away at the stars Yat and Oa. The Pripicans joined the space travel game to expand colonies to the stars Paz, Pea, and eventually the 5 light years to the binary stars Tze and Tze-Doldus. Nephricans and Pripicans shared a galactic colony at the star Holdus, which had been a light year distance from Ea. Once Doldorian culture caught up to the Nephricans and Pripicans, they would expand their culture to the stars Ko, Poa, Koa, Fedor, and Gralga.
Nephricans and Pripicans had already began calling themselves Nephapricans long before they discovered Doldorians at the star Dol. The technologies of constant acceleration began approaching half the speed of light, or over 300 million miles per hour. That altered the DNA of the Nephricans and Pripicans who had devoted their lives to space travel. Travel at half the speed of light caused them to live over 50 times longer than terrestrial versions of their species. That had been when the members of their species that were space travelers began to be called Eagolim, and Nephricans and Pripicans that didn’t travel the stars, and lived much shorter lives were called Negolim.
Pripicans created virtual particle technologies that evolved from their understanding of quanta-nanocode and the quantum-bit. Nephricans contributed to the development of these virtual particle technologies by discovering dark matter or phantom matter, which illuminated the mystery of gravity. Gravity is caused by the ubiquitous phenomenon of spontaneous momentary creation of virtual particles along the curvature of space/time. Virtual particle technologies revolutionized space travel, and led to the creation of artificially intelligent entities that would eventually be incorporated with quanta-optic-nanocode bodies that could imitate solidity. Artificially intelligent creations were just early quanta-nanocode prototypes at the time of this story, but Pripicans had already sent these artificially intelligent beings to the stars in order to explore for them. The quanta-nanocode being called Begalius had been sent to the star Dol in the legendary journey of The Beyonder according to data found in the Eigalli Databanks.
The first journey from Ea to Dol took place after the radio signal discovery of intelligent life on Doldoria. The Doldorians had still not noticed the broadcasting of Pripican and Nephrican attempts to contact them. The ship that made this journey had been called The Beyonder, and had been one of the first ships made to travel half the speed of light. That historic journey traveled the light year distance to the star Holdus for the routine task of tr
ansferring immigrants between planets. Then supplies were taken to the colony 2.3 light years away at the star Yat, followed then by the famous journey that traversed the 2.7 light years from Yat to the star Dol. That would be when and where the first historic contact with Doldorians would occur.
Nephapricus
* * *
The Captain drove with his son to the space base where Captain Mynervood pulled much clout and authority as one of the oldest and most respected captains of the space fleet. Here they could enjoy some privacy from the nosey civilian Negolim. On the space base most Nephricans were Eagolim who were required to take space flights in order to transform their DNA. Here their DNA would be safe from the lesser-evolved Negolim that wanted to study and understand it. The Nephricans at this time really were evolving into two species. This manifested at the time of this story in the form of the local terrestrial Negolim cultures, and the Nephaprican Space Corporation.
They stopped at a building to unload his son’s stuff and show him his room where he would stay until the next flight into space. Tyallor the chauffeur actually grabbed the bags while Captain Mynervood showed his hologram-disguised son inside.
“My son in this place space traveling Eagolim all are, and we Nephricans and mutant children of Eagolim between don’t discriminate.”
As they walked in the building they came upon a lobby where a couple members of Captain Mynervood’s crew were lounging. Three were Nephricans sitting in chairs with their tail tentacle leg between the other two tentacles. The other member of the crew had been a four-legged Pripican who knelt all four legs down on a pillow in the middle of the room to sit. Then the Pripican got up with one of the Nephricans to greet them. The Nephrican spoke. “You Adma must be who we’ve much about heard. Primary Assistant Geben Lockfreedow I am, and our Pripican Navigator Strek Lusu this this is.”
The Pripican reached out with one of his two arms, and shook Adma’s hologram hand, which really shook his actual four fingered hand. The Pripican hand was three fingered instead of two like a Nephrican hand, and the Pripican fingers were bony like Adma’s unlike the more tentacle-like fingers of Nephricans. Then the Pripican spoke in a dialect of the language that sounded strange, and hard to understand. “Hello Adma. We’ve all heard so much about you, and we have been waiting to meet you since we got here on Nephrica. Here in the space port there is no need to hide behind hologram disguises.”
While Strek spoke the other two Nephricans got out of their chairs to greet the new resident. One of them spoke.
“Adma, Ulusu Mynervood my name is. I’m half-brother yours of the same father with.”
Ulusu touched a belt button with his tentacle hand, and then instantly turned into another bald gray humanoid just like Adma. Then the other Nephrican crew member also transformed into a humanoid and said, “Frier Gambo the child of other Eagolim parents am. Eagolim crew members here we all are.”
Adma went ahead and let his disguise down. He now would be with a family he had only dreamed about his whole lonely hologram disguised life. Perhaps for the first time Adma finally did not feel the constant curse of being different and ugly. Adma knew that he now would be amongst his best friends, and also a brother who he will now probably be friends with for the rest of his life.
*
Captain Mynervood left his son with his crew who were instructed to help Adma settle in and feel at home. The Captain had an important meeting that afternoon with the space program Admiral who would formally give Captain Mynervood his next space flight assignment. It had been guaranteed to be an easy job after the last mission, which had been a warp-fusion drive experiment that failed. Never the less Captain Mynervood and his crew had performed admirably and saved the mission from complete disaster. Captain Mynervood and his crew were nearly killed in an experiment with a new kind of fusion drive that didn’t exactly work the way it had been planned from the drawing board. The nuclear explosions that were used to achieve the fusion effect blew up the backside of the ship, leaving him in a damaged spacecraft somewhere between Holdus and Paz with seven members of his crew gone along with the engines of his ship. He didn’t think the mission had been sabotaged, but the Captain also felt like he hadn’t really been expected to survive that very risky fusion drive experiment.
Pripicans who shouldn’t have even known about the experiment eventually rescued his ship and crew. That has opened up a new can of Nephrican suspicions about the Pripicans. How did the Pripicans know? How were they even able to intervene and save them? Still Captain Mynervood now arrived at the office of the Admiral to get his reward of a cruise ship assignment to journey to the star Holdus. Admiral Mull and Captain Mynervood were actually old friends who had built this galactic space travel corporation together over the last four thousand Earth years.
He walked in, stood still in front of the seated Admiral raising one tentacle arm. “Admiral Mull, Captain Mynervood for duty reporting.”
“Captain Mynervood relax. I you a new Eagolim son hear have the crew joining.” The Admiral waved a tentacle to the empty chair which the Captain sank into while saying, “The Eagolim children than non-born Eagolim like you and I in every way better are. So your efforts to produce a born Eagolim any success have had?”
The Admiral became noticeably embarrassed, “I therapy to my seed count increase have been undergoing, and sex with my five wives actively have, but still no child born has been.”
The Captain apologized. “That I sorry to hear am. I in the last mission seven members of my crew died, and four sons of Eagolim of them were. One of them my own was.”
The Admiral had been an old friend of the Captain, and had indeed been sorry about the incident. Old friend means that for over four thousand Earth years the Admiral and Captain Mynervood had worked together building a galactic empire with the help of humanoid children that were still not really welcome in Nephrican and Pripican civilizations. This had been right at the beginning of this event of galactic evolution.
“I’m about the loss of your crew very sorry am. The fusion acceleration experiments however, a different Captain and crew still with will be conducted. It someday to work is going.”
“Well I the new Captain and crew for safe voyage to wish do. No volunteers yet?”
“No .. no volunteers so I’ll one to choose have. But about that enough, you your new mission here for are. You this room that this discussion understand must not leave. Your crew the understanding under will be working that this mission Ea to Holdus is where your ship to for maintenance be grounded is.”
Captain Mynervood said, “Admiral Mull understood.”
The Admiral continued, “Very good then, you the ship to The Beyonder called assigned will be.”
Captain Mynervood became thrilled by the news. “Sir, you thank. That ship one of the best in the fleet is. I a good reliable nuclear reactor drive for a change need.” The Beyonder had been a newer ship with one of the best designed nuclear drives to date. It could accelerate up to 401,760, 330 miles per hour, or over half the speed of light. Captain Mynervood also knew that The Beyonder had been nowhere near any need to be grounded for maintenance.
The Admiral continued. “The luxury cruse mission information of the 1.22 oman journey from here to Holdus this room to leave is. Your last failed mission Pripican espionage into our affairs a success at revealing was. They you out there were not only knew, but close enough to you to have been following were. Therefore the rest of your mission this room to not leave is.”
“Sir understood.”
“When The Beyonder reaches Holdus-2 to maintenance undergo it not is. The ship and crew the passengers off will see, but with the ship then supplies for the planet Caleb the star Yat orbiting will receive. Then you and your crew immediately for the star Yat, which by the Pripicans to a routine supply run to Yat and back, then to postponed maintenance to receive to be will take on. That the Pripicans off should throw.”
Captain Mynervood had no idea where the mission would then be off to aft
er reaching the star system of Yat. “So where I the ship after the star Yat am taking reaching?”
The Admiral’s mouth at the end of his snout smiled and said, “Then you The Beyonder into the unknown to the first ship to the star Dol to reach be, and the Doldorians contact.”
That had been the big secret. Captain Mynervood would be about to go down into Nephrican galactic history as the first ship captain to travel to the star Dol where evidence of intelligent life had been pondered for many Earth years before that moment. Both Nephrican and Pripican not only knew for a long time that there had been intelligent life on a planet orbiting the star Dol, but they had even figured out their language from Doldorian radio broadcasts that were sent across space for those with ears to hear.
The Admiral continued, “Then when your ship within .2 omans of the planet gets while your ship slowing down is, I you with radio the Doldorians contact begin attempting.”
The Admiral went on with further instructions of Captain Mynervood’s secret mission to beat the Pripicans to the planet Doldoria, which orbited the star Dol in the legendary 15-star cluster of the Nephapricans. For dozens of Earth years, broadcasts from Nephricans and Pripicans had been sent to the planet Doldoria that orbited the star Dol, but no response from the Doldorians had yet been detected. The Doldorians didn’t seem to have yet even noticed the aliens that were attempting radio contact with them. Or had they?
* * *
Within the last few Earth years robot missions had been sent to orbit the planet Doldoria, which had been over 5 light years away from the planet Nephrica. These satellites had sent back unquestionable evidence of intelligent life that thrived on the planet below, which Nephricans and Pripicans had dubbed “Doldoria.” The planet had been very much like Earth, and the Doldorians were at least a couple hundred years behind the technological level of present day Earth.
A lot of that technology had been radio broadcasts that were listened to by Doldorians for entertainment. They had not yet developed anything like a television, and radio had been mostly used to spread the religious teachings about Ei, who, according to the Doldorians, created the universe with His own breath inhaling nothing and then exhaling everything. It had been said that Ei still breathed the universe into existence, and oversaw the evolution of the life that had been the offspring of the breath of this universe.