#ersatzphere

[booksnotyetwritten]

Excerpt #619

The ancient eventually stomped the ground with impatience. “Come on! What is taking so long?” Binh, Sama, and Araba glanced at each other. The wrinkled old woman rolled her eyes and removed a small, cylindrical device from her robes. A bright light pulsed out of one end, passing over the three women. The old woman muttered under her breath leaving the others to wonder in silence as to her designs. “Such degradation! What have you been doing while we’ve been asleep?”

“Degre-” Sama started to ask.

The ancient motioned toward her. “You. You’re completely lacking the activation gene.” She looked at her device and then at Araba. “Even you have a minimal chance of issuing instructions.” Before the city dweller could respond the old woman turned to the shipwright. “Now you. At least your people have kept the gene reasonably well. Now if you please.” She said indicating to the door inside the tunnel.

Binh stepped toward the door. She stood and concentrated. Nothing happened as the city as swamp dwellers looked at their friend.

“I don’t get it. What do I have to do?”

The ancient shook her hands and patted the girl on her shoulders. “Just will the door to open and it will be so,” she said as a matter of fact. Binh glanced to her friends, then to the ancient who thrust both hands towards the door. The shipwright looked at the door and closed her eyes, imagining the space without the massive circular door there. A bright blue light flashed in the center of the door and it sank into the ground.

“Ugh! Finally. Come quickly. We have to get to the makers,” said the ancient as she rushed forward. She stopped and turned to face the young women, two of them congratulating their friend. “Hurry!” She shrieked. The three’s eyes grew wide and they ran past the old woman who sighed before catching up to them.

[booksnotyetwritten]

Excerpt #618

The water sank down right on schedule. The gurgling filled the air as it sank below the ground. Sama spied a breathing hole and jammed her hand down into the mud. After a few seconds of blind exploration she pulled a geoduck from the ground and threw it into the reed basket that hung at an angle across her back. The sun spun slowly overhead, warming the cold morning tidal plane and the men and women clamming below.

Sama stood, rubbing her forehead with her bicep. The work was hard but the pay was always good. She lived alone and wanted for nothing. There was always enough to purchase the things that she wanted: spices from the desert zone, bone jewelry from the ice zone, readers from the City. She looked down at the geoduck in her hand. It shot water onto the mud and she laughed. There was a sudden deep sound from the direction of the Aquator and all the feeding gulls took to the air. The clam diggers stood and looked as a trade barge from Hapur made its way down the river. The crew on the deck waved and the captain blew her horn once more. The clam diggers cheered and waved in return.

Sama smiled but then her eyes darted to the left. A long and dark vessel quickly approached from the East. No steam spewed behind it, marking it as a City craft. She frowned. It looked like no ship that she had ever seen. The sides were all angled up the waters edge and there didn’t seem to be a deck of any kind nor could she see any crew. From a distance it almost looked like a knife of black metal, slicing through the water. It gave her an uneasy feeling. Sama put the geoduck into her basket and watched as the barge raised signalling flags.

“Greetings. Trade. Hapur. Going to. City,” whispered Sama as each flag was raised in succession. She looked at the City ship and waited. They raised no flags but stayed on course. The barge flew new flags. “Do you need. Help. Food. Fuel.” Again no response came from the black ship. Sama squinted as she saw movement from the strange ship. The front of it was suddenly enveloped in a expanding cloud of black smoke and without warning the barge exploded. There were gasps from the clam diggers as the sound of both echoed across the flood plain. Everyone watched as the black ship slowed to a standstill. The smoke dissipated and the side of the craft facing the land opened up. Sama squinted to see what was going on as the man to her left fell to the ground, a massive hole in his head. She stared at him before someone screamed. As one the clam diggers ran. Whizzing sounds filled the air and spots of mud burst from the ground. Here and there people fell and didn’t get up.

Sama’s heart threatened to break out of her chest as she ran towards a familiar sight in the distance. “To the mangroves! Everyone keep low and run to the mangroves!” Those that were left quickly heeded her instructions and they ran without speaking towards the safety of the treeline.

[booksnotyetwritten]

Excerpt #617

Araba raced down the stairs of her school. She had been the first to line up at the classroom door and she flew out as the last bell rang. She could see fellow classmates running from their last instruction rooms, hungry to reach the railing of the central staircase. Her smile only grew wider as she arrived there first, leaping and arcing her body in the air before landing with her arms and legs around it. She let out a whoop as she spiraled to the first floor. Her friends cheered and the others booed, both swiftly growing distant as she landed with a skid across the tiled bottom floor.

Araba darted through the entrance of the school, passing the headmaster whose smile was as bright as hers. “You’d better run hard if you want to make the ninety-two train,” he chuckled. All she could do was nod as she made her way to the station. Her route was practiced and planned: a jump here, a slide there, another railing ridden. Soon the crowds milling about the station came into view. The automated message spouted off final boarding in five different languages over the loudspeaker.

“Last call for the ninety-two train!” Shouted a train attendant in Akanglish. He stood inside one of the train cars and motioned for people to quickly enter. Araba’s lungs were on fire as she slipped through the closing doors of the third train car. She collapsed on the ground and gasped for breath.

An older woman chuckled and pulled her up. “Girl. Don’t kill yourself. Why don’t you go and sit yourself down.”

Araba looked up and shook her head. “Nanabaa. You sit down. I don’t need this seat. You’re much-” she replied.

“Older?” Said the old woman quickly, her eyebrow raised. Nearby passengers smiled and stifled laughter as the young woman acquiesced. “Now then child. You tell me why you were in such a hurry.”

Araba looked out the window as the train raced passed the black, ferrocrete buildings. “I need to get to the market in the fouth district. My classmate Gyasi said that he heard his mother say that there was a shipment of breadfruit from the plains zone coming in.”

“Oh! Breadfruit eh? I haven’t had that in years!” Exclaimed the old woman.

The young girl nodded. “I’ve never had it before and I wanted to get to the store before they close.”

The old woman chuckled and nodded. “That’s a pretty good reason...oh. I didn’t ask what your name was. What are you called child?”

“Araba Nanabaa,” she replied.

“Ah. Born on a Tuesday,” said the old woman.

“My father used to say Tuesday was the worst day of the week.”

“Why’s that child?”

“Because Mondays must happen, Wednesday is the middle of the week, Thursday is one day from Friday, and well Friday is Friday. So default-”

“Tuesday is the worst day of the week,” said the old woman with a laugh.

Araba smiled. “He used to say that I was the best thing that had ever happened on a Tuesday...” she said, trailing off. The old woman, quickly whipped out a green piece and handed it to the young girl.

“And I bet he was not wrong.” Araba looked up, a frown on her face. “Now then girl. If you can race your way to the market as fast as you got on this train then you’re sure to make it while there’s breadfruit left. If you do you buy the both of us a loaf with that money.” The young girl smiled, causing the old woman to as well. “But I want my change back you hear?” She said, a wicked look on her face. Araba nodded as the train attendant echoed the automated message of the approaching stop in the fourth district. She stood and readied herself by the door.

They snapped open and the old woman shouted. “Now girl! Run!” As Araba flew through the doors and on toward the market.

[booksnotyetwritten]

Excerpt #612

“The Ersatzphere? That crazy Noah’s Ark?” Asked her father, instruction manual in hand.

“It’s my ticket out of here,” replied Ming-huá.

“You’re leaving?”

She looked up and locked eyes with him. “What more is there for me here?”

He stammered. “You haven’t even finished schooling!”

Ming-huá threw her arms up. “For what? So I can have something to think about as I work on the atmosphere scrubbers like mother and my brothers?”

They’re saving the planet young woman,” replied her father, a waver in his voice.

The young woman exploded. “This shit hole is already dead!” In the utter silence that followed her father couldn’t bear to look at his daughter. Eventually she spoke, her voice softer. “Everyone knows we’ve already xìngjiāo the planet beyond repair. Those scrubbers are a temporary stopgap at best and a calming drug for the population at worst.” She walked over and took his hands in hers. “Father! You have to see! There’s nothing left for us here. Nothing left for me. I need a future that fills me with hope. Something I can look forward too,” she said as her father nodded. “I mean if staying here feels crazier then getting on a generational ship headed into deep space I clearly do not want to be here.” They both chuckled until her father’s face hardened.

“Have you told your mother?” He asked.

“No. The shuttle leaves in an hour,” replied Ming-huá, her head shaking.

Her father’s face saddened. “That soon? You’re not even going to say goodbye?”

“I’m saying goodbye to you aren’t I?” She said, squeezing his hands. “Besides, my idiot brothers would shout at me and mother would make a scene.”

He nodded. “You are right about that. It’s so sudden though...”

“It’s not like I’m saying goodbye forever. We’ll still be able to talk over the solar net until we’re out of the system.” She hugged him tightly. “I love you father.”

“I love you too Ming-huá.”

[booksnotyetwritten]

Excerpt #611

 The entry warnings blared insides the small capsule.

“Two minutes until touchdown.” Chimed Ooln. Gil glanced at the computer readout, as they lay strapped into the reentry harness. “One min-” Started the hologram before the pilot cut it off.

“I know! We’re almost there. Just be quiet!” They exclaimed as the small craft shrieked through the air toward the ground. The hologram looked sheepishly at the pilot and before it could say anything the craft smashed into the ground. Dirt and grass churned as it flew into the air. The shaking eventually stopped and the pilot unhooked themselves from the harness and headed toward the door. They pushed the release and it swung open with a hiss. After a heavy dose of the disinfectant they stepped forward into the suit room. Inside was waiting a massive, bulky EVA suit hanging on the wall. The ship hologram patched into the comms.

“You don’t know what’s out there! I highly suggest we send out drones to study the surrounding area.”

“Shut up Ooln. I haven’t seen solid ground in almost two hundred cycles. I’m going out,” replied the pilot as they latched the helmet onto the body of the suit. Their voice, muffled somewhat from inside the suit, drifted over the comms. “Open exterior door.”

Ooln sighed. “Releasing exterior door.” The door to the main cabin sealed and there was another hiss as beams of light cascaded into the suit room. Gil bounded outside and the helmet sensors readouts suddenly inundated their view.

“Suit. Only display readouts for topography, atmospherics, and non-vegetation life signs.“ The helmets face plate cleared and Gil could now see a rolling landscape of unending grass. “Wow,” they exclaimed as they turned around, in the distance was a treeline that seemed to stretch from end of the horizon to the other.

“Is everything alright?” Said Ooln over the comms.

“Better than alright. This looks like Old-Earth.”

“...That’s not possible. There’s no way it could-” Stammered the hologram as Gil undid the latches around their neck. “What are you doing?” Shrieked Ooln’s voice from inside the bulbous helmet. Gil stood with eyes closed, breathing heavily.

“We’ve found it!” They yelled, throwing the helmet skyward. “We’ve found it!” They exclaimed over and over as they ran in circles with their arms out, hands whipping through the lush green grass. A sigh from the hologram floated out of the helmet as it flew back towards the ground.

[picturesandsketches]

Some sketches of "plants" that have food/medicine/nothing in them.