The Ruins of Arlandia

The Ruins of Arlandia - By William Wood


ACKNOWLEDGMENTS


To my family, for your love and constant encouragement. To my lovely wife, thank you for helping me achieve my dream. For reading and rereading the many versions and rewrites and helping me find the right words, and to my daughters, for listening to me read parts of the book, and helping me to see things more clearly.





Chapter One: Going-away Party



Calvin Range stood on the deck of his family home, looking out over the river. The sun was setting, turning blankets of clouds the color of fire. It was late fall, and the temperature at night dropped rapidly. The surrounding tree-covered hills displayed their red, orange, and dark purple leaves. He took a deep breath. He loved the cold air mixed with the smell of wood fires. Calvin took it all in, savoring every aspect of his home.

It was a very special evening. The family was celebrating Calvin’s graduation from the Space Academy.

Tables and chairs lined the balcony. Silver trays with hors d’oeuvres sat on tables in the back with a server behind each one. A punch fountain stood next to the centerpiece, a large ice sculpture in the shape of a spaceship. A jazz band occupied the opposite side of the deck, and it played lively music.

One hundred and nine guests, dressed in tuxedos, military uniforms, and evening gowns mingled, ate, and drank out of tall crystal glasses. Many stayed warm by sitting around a large fire pit in the middle of the deck. As darkness grew, several torches were lit.

Calvin wore his service dress uniform—black and red with silver insignias.

“Well, you did it,” a voice said. Calvin turned and saw his best friend, Jax, approaching. “For ten years you’ve been saying you were going to join the Space Command, and you finally did it. The big question is, will you ever go into space?”

“Of course I will, Jax,” Calvin said, trying to sound confident. “I know someone who has connections. He says we’ll go into space again, someday.”

“Calvin, the fact that your father is a senator and a senior member of the space committee isn’t going to make a difference,” Jax said. “There hasn’t been a manned space mission in ten years. Your father doesn’t have enough clout to get us back into space. I’m sorry, but I think you’ve chosen a dead-end career.”

“I think you’re wrong,” Calvin said.

“Definitely the most unpopular.”

“Then why did you join up?” Calvin asked.

“It's your fault,” Jax said. “I'm still trying to figure out how you talked me into it. Are you sure this is a good idea?”

“Yes,” Calvin said, looking up at the stars. “We’re going to get back out there. That’s where the future is.”

“The only people who believe that are at this party. Everyone else thinks we’re crazy.”

“Your dad still won’t talk to you?”

“No. He’s still mad that I won’t be a farmer, like him.”

“Sorry, Jax,” Calvin said. “I wish more people felt like we do. But when we report to Space Command next week…”

“When we report next week,” Jax interrupted. “We’ll serve proudly on the only spaceship allowed to operate, the mighty simulator ship, Defender.”

Calvin didn’t answer; he just stared at the stars.

The sound of a spoon tapping on a glass rang out. The music and hum of conversation stopped.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” a gray-haired man called loudly and stepped on a raised platform near the house. Calvin’s father, Foster Range, had a smile on his face and looked at his guests with genuine appreciation. “Thank you so much for coming this evening. This is a big day for our family. It is my pleasure to introduce to you, Lieutenant Calvin Range.” He was answered with a loud roar of applause. “Come up here, Calvin!” Calvin crossed the deck and stepped up beside his dad.

“Speech!” someone shouted.

“Thank you, everyone,” Calvin said.

“Excuse me, Lieutenant,” Jax said, jumping up next to Calvin and his father. “I think they mean me. You’ll get your turn in a second.” Calvin smiled and stepped back.

“Senator Range,” Jax said. “I have something to say. I’ve been friends with Calvin my whole life. His dream of joining Space Command was so strong, he gave it to me. Anyway, Calvin, I just want to say that I’m proud of you. I’m lucky that I can call you my friend. I’d wish you the best of luck in your career, but you won’t need it. You’re going to be a captain someday, and after that you’ll probably be in charge of Space Command. Please everyone, a toast. To Calvin! May there be no limit to your successes. Good luck in your new adventure.”

“To Calvin!” the crowd shouted. Everyone clicked their glasses together and took a drink.

“Thanks, Jax!” Calvin said as Jax took a seat. Calvin’s father stepped forward again.

“Tonight, we have more than one reason to celebrate. I have the privilege of announcing that for the first time in ten years, the council has approved a manned space mission.” There were several gasps, and then a pause. Then everyone clapped and cheered.

“The Sorenia has been cleared to fly a training mission around our solar system, and my son will be on it.” A wave of exuberance overtook the crowd. There were shouts and cheers with raised glasses. Foster nodded to the band, and it began playing again. Everyone went back to talking, eating, and drinking.

“Thanks, Dad,” Calvin said. “This party means a lot to me.”

“I’m very proud of you, Son,” Foster said. “I’m also jealous. Ten years. Who knows if the council will ever let us go into space again? I doubt it.”

“They need to stop letting the past scare them so much,” Calvin said. “It’s been eighty years. We don’t even know what’s out there anymore.”

“That’s true,” Foster said. “That’s why we need to go find out.”

“Right,” Calvin said. “The Dark Terror might not even be out there anymore.”

Foster was about to reply, but he stopped when a tall man in dress uniform approached them.

“Senator,” the man said. “Thank you for inviting me to your home.”

“Thank you for coming, Captain Delik.” The two shook hands. Then the captain offered his hand to Calvin. “Lieutenant Range, it’ll be a privilege to have you on my crew. I hear you’re a natural at navigation.”

“Thank you, Captain,” Calvin said, shaking his hand. “At least in the simulator.”

Captain Delik laughed, and he turned to Foster. “I’m surprised you got this mission cleared. I thought our days in space were over.”

“It wasn’t easy,” Foster said. “But the backup to the Planetary Disruption Shield needs a new power generator.”

“They didn’t tell you to use drones?”

“They did, but this time the work is more delicate. We can’t trust robots to do it. One wrong move and our planet will be visible for any passing spaceship to see.”

“Oh, I see, so that’s how you sold it.”

“Yes, and it didn’t hurt that two senators owed me a favor.”

“You make it sound easy.”

“Trust me, it wasn’t. I had to call in a few favors. Then the security committee threatened me. They said if the Sorenia wanders anywhere near the edge of the solar system, I’ll find myself in a prison cell. I’m passing that threat on to you.”

“Thank you, Senator.” The captain’s smile faded.

“I just don’t want to be alone in that prison cell. Don’t worry. Just stay close to home and you’ll be all right.”

“Can I ask you a question? I heard that the budget for the space program was going to be cut in half next year.”

Several people stopped talking and looked in their direction.

Foster’s expression changed to a sympathetic smile. “We can talk about that later, Captain. You should enjoy your mission. There’s no telling when we will have another opportunity like this one.”

The party didn’t end until late in the evening. When Calvin finally went to bed, he couldn’t sleep. When he got tired of trying, he sat on the balcony and stared up at the stars. What was out there? Was the Dark Terror real or just a story told to scare the population? He had heard the stories his whole life. His father told him they were lies. The problem was that the stories worked. Nobody wanted to go into space. A massive amount of money was spent on the Planetary Disruption Network, a system designed to hide the planet from passing ships. Everyone was scared of space. Maybe Calvin was crazy, but he couldn’t wait to get out there.