The Custodian had assured everyone that the planet would be protected from the strange effects of jump space. Even looking at the strobing colours of it made Michael’s head ache, his mind filling with a buzzing. This was a common side effect, ships with glass windows had special shutters that rolled down to reduce the feeling, but even then, a faint tingle persisted. The rest of the crew had told him various horror stories about what would happen should the invisible field projected by the jump drive fail whilst in the corridor.
The process for preparing to move Eden had involved switching off the artificial sun, plunging the surface into an unsettling night. The fire had been part of fighting that darkness along with several external lights some of the landed ships had. The result was illumination within the town itself, but an unsettling wall of black outside. It wasn’t lost on Michael how Eden itself was the same, a tiny spec of life floating in the void between systems, a mote in the darkness.
“Crazy that this thing moves isn’t it?” Aileena said. She had appeared from the shadows, a drink in her hands. The warm light of the fire danced across her green skin. Michael could remember how strange it had seemed as a young teen when Council ships had first appeared in the sky, how he had marvelled at the dozens of different aliens paraded on television. It had quickly become normal, the sight of aliens a growing daily thing. Michael’s job, before he had been abducted, was giving tours around London to visiting aliens. Earth was sacred after all and coming to the planet and experiencing its sights had become something of a pilgrimage to the citizens of the Council. Now a woman with green skin and six eyes seemed positively normal.
“Just add it to the list.” Michael adjusted himself on the log he was sat on, moving over so that Aileena could sit down. “Are my experiences typical? Is this what it’s like out here?”
“No, not really. Most people never even leave their home worlds, and honestly, most of those aren’t that different from Earth. People just going about their lives, you know?”
“Except for all the oppression and religious brainwashing.”
“From what I understand, some bits of Earth aren’t so different. Still, I get your point.” Aileena took a sip of her drink. “You know…” She held the glass up, examining the amber liquid by the light of the fire. It caught the flickering glow, releasing it in waves of gold over Aileena’s face.
“There’s a thought there, on the tip of your tongue.”
“I was just wondering how much liquid the Custodian could make. I’m thinking long term, we can’t keep tapping the townsfolk for money forever. I mean, think about it. We have something here that can make the ideal drink for a species based on a few quick scans. If we can work out a way to do the scans for the Custodian, we can make Eden self-supporting.”
Michael nodded, it made sense. He wondered how the Custodian would feel, becoming a soft drinks baron. The machine was a little odd but seemed generally agreeable. It had welcomed people cutting down the trees it had spent so long cultivating, seeing the supporting of life as its purpose.
That plant life was impressive, generally much larger than anything Michael was used to. It made sense, he remembered reading something about how the atmosphere of the Earth at the time was excellent for plants. Michael realised he was something of a time traveller, seeing a reflection of the world as it used to be, though one admittedly distorted. Michael had seen a map of the Earth pedalled by flat Earth conspiracy theorists once, the continents twisted and distorted to fit their theories. He allowed himself a private chuckle, they would lose their minds if they discovered that not only was there a flat earth, but it was built by a race of ancient spacefaring lizard people. It was a full house on conspiracy bingo.
“That’s a good idea. If the Custodian goes for it.”
“I don’t see why not.” Aileena finished her drink, setting the glass on the ground. “Have you seen Mellok at all?”
“Probably with the rest of the congregation,” Michael said, rolling his eyes as he did. Mellok had slowly slipped into the position of head priest, a natural transition for a man who had spent years searching for a messiah. He was spending most of his time within the still expanding church building. Mellok had called it the temple, but Michael hated that word. Somehow it felt grander, more important. Temples were places of ancient gods and powerful myths, whilst to Michael churches were somewhere that had the occasional bake sale. He could cope with being a messiah if all it meant was tea and scones in his name.
“Ah, yes. The swarm of zealots.”
“That’s a bit harsh,” Michael said. “I mean, some of them lost their homes. I can understand sinking into a religion in that circumstance. I just wish their religion wasn’t based around me. I still have no idea what exactly it is I’m supposed to do. Everyone I’ve asked about the Knower and the legends around it says something different from the last person.”
“That’s just the nature of something like the Council. Even with all the indoctrination, keeping millions of worlds all exactly in line with one another is a big ask.”
“I suppose. It just feels like if people want to load all this expectation onto my shoulders, they could at least tell me what they want.”
“I think if people say what they want, the universe might be a lot simpler.” All six of Aileena’s eyes blinked, their gaze locked on Michael. “Maybe too easy,” she said after a moment of silence, looking away. She dug the heel of her boot into the dirt. “I wonder how long this is going to take? It’s weird right, it feels like night, but it should be the middle of the afternoon?”
“No idea. This jump space stuff is still confusing to me. I only just about grasp the distance increases time exponentially thing.” Michael’s first jump space trip had taken only a few minutes, whilst the last one had taken months. It had been explained to him that normally several short jumps worked out faster than one long one, a side effect of the strange meandering nature of jump corridors. Kestok had shown him a map of the long journey the Sword had taken, it looked like a child’s scribbling, a furious interweaving path that seemed to cross the entire galaxy before getting to its destination.
“It confuses most people, honestly. It’s just one of those things you take for granted once you’re using it. I can fly a ship, but I just know what buttons to push and which levers to pull. Understanding what they’re doing in the background is Kestok’s job.”
The fake star above began to illuminate faintly. Not with artificial daylight, but with a dull blue shimmer. The whole thing was glowing, giving the land beneath a strange otherworldly feeling. The people in the town all looked up as one, each enthralled by the new development.
“It’s oddly beautiful, isn’t it?” Michael said.
“Yeah. Yeah, it is.” Aileena stood up as if she were trying to get closer to the azure orb.
The show continued, as pillars of matching blue light erupted into the air. They formed a dome, each beam emanating from the ice that ran around the edge of Eden and ending when it struck the artificial star. They looked like the glowing bars of a birdcage, and Michael suddenly felt a little claustrophobic.
The pillars of light began to stretch, growing wider until the entire sky was covered in shimmering blue light. It was like being trapped inside a marble, looking out through the glass. Michael realised what was happening, the light a more high-tech version of the Seeker’s shutters. A screen to keep out the effects of jump space.