New Pangaea Pg 221-229

Week 35

Day 1

The patrols sent out came back with no chimps activities. The progress at Monolith has stopped as we used the available W-Bots on the new castle. The castle will extend out to the central bastion built earlier by Philip. It will not go all the way out but part of the distance like a jetty. The MSV will docks there on the east side of the jetty the outer perimeter will be fenced up with steel mesh and poles. The scientists are looking to rear fishes there. That was their idea of a joke. The castle walls be thirty feet high build with stones and the another ten feet of wooden logs above it. That will give them a height of forty feet from the river and ground level. The walls around the rear facing south and east will have a moat measuring twenty across and twenty feet deep which makes the whole castle surrounded by water from the river and swamp. There will be three gates; one to the jetty, one to the south and other towards east.

Towers (or keeps) are the central part of the defensive castle plans. We build ten of them with two on each North and West wall as they faced the water and swamps. The other six spread out on the east and south side of the walls. They are build square with windows on all sides and would have living quarters on the lower floors. The towers and walls has battlements on it, so the defenders could be covered in an attack like spears.

Within the outer castle walls is the large yard and then the second castle inside. It actually a second castle within the first, albeit a smaller version but with lowered walls at twenty give feet but its all build with stones. Inside the mini castle are the command center and housing units for the personnels assigned here. The outer castle wall measured over two thousand feet and the inner one is only six hundred feet square. But its has a landing bay for the Bubbles and HELI-PODs. It can accommodate two hundred personnels including colonist when its ready.

It will have its own mini farms and corral for the herbivores.

The castle will be under two Commander; General Seeker for her people and the newly promoted Captain Ludwig. SWAMP now will be relocated to near Outpost Eight area and be on land as BASE Three. The Chengs has installed in the force field for them from the last of the units so that they are well protected.

Day 2

The local residents are not ignored in our pursuit of warmongering efforts as Doctor Leong requested permission to visit the apes again. He was articulate in this arguments that I let him go. Specialist Dixon also volunteered. I think there is more than meet the eye here to see. In the absence of Doctor Leong, Doctor Bormann offered to feed his pets in the pit.

Corin came out of her seclusion and asked me if she can perform some rites for her fallen chimps. I approved it as a gesture of trust and friendship. Corin staked out an area on the open yard at where we were re-building  Outpost Six. She laid down some of the items she collected from the yard that must had belonged to the chimps. She even found a red tunic which we helped her fished it out of the swamp. She found a head wear form the jungle and all of this was accumulated on the area she has staked out. She then sat down before those items and started what sounds like chanting or ‘raving lunacy’ as said by a colonist. She did not move from her position for the day and ignored all food and drinks. Then she got up and walked round the items and even stomped them. She was very intense in her emotions and she went back to her chanting again. She will repeat the same process a few more times the next two days.

‘Corin is telling the story of the Ancient Greek death ritual to the departed and the Gods so that they will allowed them to go over peacefully. To them death is what will be on the other side with what the living did here too. As there was no body to be cremated here, she is chanting on their deeds so that it will pay for their passage to the other side. In the proper ritual, payment has to me made to cross the divide between life and death on the River Styx manned by the rower named Charon. A coin was to be placed under the tongue of the deceased one for the purpose of paying the fare. If there is no fare, then the soul of the dead person would never get to cross the river. Sometimes the souls would return to haunt the people who had failed to provide them with the fare’.

‘Once across the river, there is this huge wall guarded by a Cerberus, the three-headed dog. He will attacked anything that is living. If you passed him, you will reached the gate to a large field shaded with trees, called the Field of Asphodel. This is where the departed wait for judgment by Minos, Rhadamanthys, and Aeacus. If you are not received by them, you stay there for forever. Its like a no-mans land. If you are bad, you faced Sisyphus and Tantalus and its equivalent to the Devil. If you are good, you were sent to live in the Elysian Fields, where its like Heaven to some of the faith believers. You can be reborn but not all do it, as only the bravest would return. If you do it for three times, then the Isles of the Blest awaits you.’

‘She is paying their way through with good deeds in lieu of payments. So they can go to the Elysian Fields. She cares for her people. She is after all a healer.’ 

When Boris tells me such long tales, I either fall asleep or gain more of an insight. In this case, it was the later.

Day 4

‘Thank you. Its done.’ That was what Corin told me. I went to her so called chanting site and saw it was cleared of all traces. ‘She threw them all in the swamp.’ That was one of the colonist helping in the building. ‘Loony I tell ya, if you want my opinion.’ I agreed with him on the loony bit as we are all loony to be here, but on the so called ceremony, its her right.

She did speak after that event.

‘I have appeased the souls of my dead people. You may build your castle without fear of them hounding your people.’ I could only do was nod at her comment. Then she sat down and told me what happened after she left the colony.

Statement from Corin, healer and free chimpanzee

Day 4 Week 36

1012hr

My troops walked for days to go back to the camp. We wanted to go back and convince the Tano to listen and work with your people. We wanted to explain to him the loss of life's if he fights. We wanted peace just as some of us in the people wants too. We were intercepted by Beno; my previous mate and turned traitor on us. He was with a troop of fifty chimps and they held us as prisoners. I pleaded my case but he will not listen. He accused me of treason and collaborating with the enemy. For five days , he staked my friends to the stakes and let the creatures killed them. He ravaged me for his own and leave me in pain. But in the end of the five days, he has to go back to the camp. He wanted to kill me but the others stopped him. They had their orders to take me back alive.

I saw Tano, but Beno spoke first. He speaks of lies and untruth of me, and how his men had to fight my friends. I protested but none would defend mine nor disclaimed his words. In the end, Tano imposed the oath of silent on me. I am not allowed to speak unless I am told to do so. Its our sacred oath. I cannot break it until the day has come. Tano listened to more lies and untruth before he declared that war would be the answer. Just as we fight the lizard men, they will fight you. He called the troops to march and I was be led there too. I was made to followed like a slave, but I escaped one night. I run and I run till I come here. I broke my oath to tell you of their coming. I know and I renew my oath again, I was silent because of my oath but my tears cry for my friends. They died fighting you as they are with the others. Anger knows no friendship and I cried.

When the oath was lifted, I did my service for them. I released their pain and soul so they can be free. I do not want them trapped here. I wanted to join them but I cannot. Not now as I am needed to close this war. You can help me but I do not know how. Maybe one day the signs will come and we do it together.

I was touched by her statements but the question still remains. Do I trust her or not? She could be lying and I may be led to another trap. But one thing is confirmed. Doctor Liam confirmed that she is pregnant.

‘You believed her?’ I looked at Vickie who asked me that question. My reply was; ‘do you?’ Well, she took it literally and was upset with me. All I wanted was her opinion as a woman.

Fragged, I was.

Week 36

Day 1

Unless we are willing to settle down into a world that is our prison, we must be ready to move beyond Earth. . . . People who view industrialization as a source of the Earth's troubles, its pollution, and the desecration of its surface, can only advocate that we give it up. This is something that we can't do; we have the tiger by the tail. We have 4.5 billion people on Earth. We can't support that many unless we're industrialized and technologically advanced. So, the idea is not to get rid of industrialization but to move it somewhere else. If we can move it a few thousand miles into space, we still have it, but not on Earth. Earth can then become a world of parks, farms, and wilderness without giving up the benefits of industrialization. - Isaac Asimov, 'Our Future in the Cosmos—Space,' lecture given at the College of William and Mary, full transcript online, 1983.

If he was here today, he would had realized we do not have that many of people on Earth, although we did explored them out to other planets and we have no more nature parks, farms and wilderness to call it our own on Earth. Here in New Pangaea, we can probably create it and with the industrialization and technology we can made it good like the old Earth. But before we do that, we had already end up in conflict with the first known intelligent species here.

Are we truly selfish as an explorer or we agents of destruction?

‘Commander, this Major Shaw. You are needed here on Monolith fast.’

‘Cronus or Kronos is the first generations of Gods in the Greek mytholodogy. He was part of the children of Gaia ( Mother of Earth ) and Uranus ( the God of Sky ). Cronus symbol is the sickle and worship in ancient Greeks to celebrate the harvest. He is the patron of harvest. He is also known as Saturn in one other civilianization named Roman. Cronus was said to usurp his father, Uranus and became the ruler of the Universe. He was to start the Golden Age where there was no need for law and rules as every act was the right one. This so called piece we found may be a coin with the image of the sickle and the sun on one side, and the words in Ancient Greeks; Kronos. We may have discovered the first signs of civilianization on New Pangaea.’ Doctor Boris was holding a metal piece that he claims is a coin from Ancient Greece.

‘No, Doctor Boris; there are possibility the second civilianization after the apes. And don’t you forget Corin speaks ancient Greeks. It could be from the apes who uses the coin and it was found here. There may not be a second civilianization. But how Corin’s people learned ancient Greeks remains the puzzle. Assuming there was another civilianization which taught the apes, could be these inhabitants be from ancient Greece and are these inhabitants like us and thus taught  the chimps. So what happened to them?’ Doctor Sze Thing was throwing in his share of the theory. ‘I did some tests on the so called coin and think it may be pre-dated back fifteen thousand years ago. The only nation who could traverse space was then the Atlantean’s and they were around when Athens was around. But that was also a myth.’

I picked up the metal piece and turned it over.

‘Has anyone considered that this could be button or part of a panel cover instead of the so-called coin. I see some edges which are off.’ I got the scientists on a new level of chattering as I withdrew to see the progress on Monolith.

‘Nice move there, Commander.’ I looked at Major Shaw and smiled at her. Diversion is a basic tactic of the military. “Anyway what is a coin? I never seen one in my lifetime? We all used credits now.’

‘Neither do I, Major. But keep up the good work.’

Monolith One and Two is ready with housing and storage units. Farms are already started on the hydrophonic plants. I am actually impressed with the works. The winds here are fierce and fast but the wall design pushed it up and away from here. Some more colonists has moved here and the place is getting packed.

‘Doctor Tanaki and Frost would like your permission to explore the Monolith.’ I knew they would; its the latest theme park in the city. I duly approved it. ‘We are also planning to build some towers like the ones on the Castle. It will served as lookout and defensive points.’

The lady has it all in her palm.

Micheal Bent came to see me on the possibility of relocating the people in Main Village to Village Two. He felt they could strengthen the defenses and with its close proximity to Outpost Six, it will be strategic. Main Village can be converted to become a Military Base. But I said to him; I have limited personnels in the military. He said no, you have an army now; the Village Guards are now numbered a hundred. They can operate Napoleons’ and Catapults. I told him to speak to Admiral Stokes.

‘Already did.’ He was walking off with his usual jolly mood. But it was not far as the tremors came suddenly and the whole place shook badly. This is the next BIG one, we been waiting. I saw Micheal fell and I rushed over to hold him. He was shaken but he is okay. The tremor lasted ten minutes and the reports starts coming. Uncompleted walls are down and so are some of the housing units on Village Two. Monolith was spared in a way, but BASE Three had one tripod damaged. I saw Doctor Leong running towards me.

‘The pit broke up and came up. The reptiles escaped.’ So much for his effort  and care; them snakes were never meant to be kept as pets anyway.

Day 2

I relooked at my roster. There has been changes.

Outpost One / Tip’s Nest; Corporal Micheal and one specialist. Travel time half an hour.

Outpost Two / East Ends; Corporal Saidin and one specialists. Travel time ten minutes

Outpost Three / Wide Plains; Corporal Duffy and nine specialist including recruits. Travel time thirty minutes. The other four are from Outpost One and Two.

Outpost Four / Cavern; Sargeant Keefe and nine specialist including recruits, with four at the ramp. Travel time ten minutes to the vertical cave.

Outpost Five / Southern Belles; Sargeant Kabe and six specialist including recruits. Travel time is forty five minutes.

Outpost Six; Sargeant Sharon and Mick O-Brien,with ten specialists.

Military Village: Twenty  Village Guards

Village Two; Seventeen guards and Sixty Village Guards.

Patrol; Corporal Pedro and three specialists; New Furies.

BASE; Major Feeley, Major Chavdar and eight specialist and recruits.

BASE TWO; Major Shaw and nine Specialists including recruits.

BASE THREE:; Lieutenant Carlos Manuela and Sargeant Ali Hamid plus the remaining personnels; Captain Ludwig and three pilots.

Forty Village Guards in training.

And two hundred armed colonist. I gave the women some weapons.

I got eighteen M-Bots left as some won’t work or are damaged. We been using them for construction with the W-Bots.

Vickie got only thirteen military personnels, whereas the rest are colonist. Likewise I will reinforced Outpost Six with colonist when its ready.

‘Commander, do you remember Mathew Burns? Well, he is dead. He died last night in the Infirmary. But we have another problem. The disease could had spread. Encephalitisn symptoms are in ten patients now, including one of my nurses, Susan Bent.’ Doctor Bashir does not mince his words when he tells me bad news.

‘How bad?’ I was more concerned on Susan.

‘Not sure as yet. Its still too early. We are treating them but we fear an epidemic. Maybe even to the creatures.’

‘I thought you had him quarantined?’ I am very upset at the lack of medical procedures.

‘Yes, but there are nurses in and out of the place. They could had transmitted the disease or the materials used on him. We do not have a full medical facility here. We were improvising for the war with the chimps. No one cared about Micheal Burns.’ The Doctor is showing his anger at me for my focus on the war. I neglected his request for more medical equipments; the medic aids are basic for wounds and cuts. Virus detection units are not available. They had to rely on the scientist to help.

‘Okay, do what you can. I will speak to Earth Council.’

‘You might be too late. Our Parasaurolophus herd has three casualties and so is our Troodon. The virus was found in the blood streams. We believed the carrier are the flies that caused the tsetse disease but we cannot confirm.’

Now that is bad. How widespread is the disease, we do not know but we know we could be the first carrier.

‘Catch me those flies. I need confirmation. And cull those in the corrals.’

‘I can assure you, Commander.  My position here is well fought out for. I am Doctor Ziva Moshe, Entomologists/ Anthropologist/ Biologist, which is more than most of them are. Unfortunately, I have better brains than them and aged slower. Yes, I am just thirty eight and single, Plus I did a stint in the military and an expert in Krav Maga. I am free this evening.’ I looked at the petite looking Middle Eastern lady dressed in her doctor’s flock over her jungle camouflage dungarees. She is dissecting a fly as we speak. Not a very good sigh to look at though considering the large screen is giving me a full display of the flies internals.

‘I am busy these days, Doctor. But could we speak on the fly please?’ I am still attached to Vickie for now. And Mediterranean is not my favourite dish.

‘Aha.... I think we may have something ..... soon enough. So forgive me, if I would asked you leave me to my intellectual works. I will advise when we have some or any discovery.’ That was very nice of her to tell me to buzz off as in the words of the flies.

But nothing was to compared to the Earth Council’s call, which fried my ear drums with their shelling on the stupidity of the act to allowed a virus to spread on New Pangaea. After that call, I paid a visit to Rexy who was nearby. We had our chat from within safe distance. He is still alive accounts for the epidemic has not spread.

Day 5

Our creature counts outnumbers our human count; one T-Rex ( but not Rexy ), one more Troodon, two raptors and three apes which we could find intact with the signs of the virus. We do not know what others are there who has been gobbled up. But we are still searching, and for those we discovered; the only way to BBQ them.

But the good news came soon enough.

‘You owe me a date, Commander. I may had found the stop gap cure. But its unconfirmed unless we do a field test. No promises.’

‘No promises..’ I agreed. She wanted to cull the flies for now. If we can do that we can stop the spread of the diseases. These flies typically produce four generations yearly, and up to thirty one generations in total over their entire lifespan. In order to curb, we use the steriled insect technique and it has worked but its not widespread in use to reduce tsetse populations those days as it involves  large doses of gamma rays to make them sterile. Then we have to release them into the wild to see if they will mate. We do not have conclusive results but there was some which said it worked.

‘Firing blanks, huh.’ She nodded.

‘But the culling process is the rapid action deployment move.’ She added and also read my thoughts and said ‘When Earth had flies, they numbered billions so don’t worry about them going extinct.’ But in actual fact, its extinct on Earth as there was no place to lay their larvae or seek food. This particular disease has been non-occurring since the flies has stopped in existence on Earth., So no tsetse flies, no diseases so no antibodies.  But there were earlier tests done and she is trying to figured them out. She is in talks with Earth for any solutions.

We took her advise and layout a plan to spray the darned stuff all over the area of over two hundred miles.

‘What if they are outside the zone?’ I looked at Major Shaw and said; ‘We are not responsible for cross borders contamination.’ She did not like my reply. I know I am just giving her a wild statement, but I do not know what else I could do.

 A Spinosaurus came to Village Two farm and went on a rampage.  I had it put down using the Bubble as this is one helluva big one. Doctor Boris took samples of its blood but found no signs of the virus, but it did has some bad wounds on its hind legs. They do not look like bites but more like large traps contraption that slammed into the flesh. It could be manmade.

But what worries me more was that Corin has disappeared. She was last seen in Outpost Six yard and then gone. I got Bubbles to search for her and they could not see her at all. She may know how to hide from Bubbles now. Or she is dead, which is most unlikely.