The main idea behind this is to write a story based upon our album, Out Of Place. The story is part of the second half of the album. This story has been developed while writing the songs and will now be shown to you weekly.
Carlos and Hugo.

SOLITARY STAR - Chapters:   :: Part I   :: Part II   :: Part III   :: Part IV   :: The Ships   :: The Micro System

"Somewhere in the vast Universe, there lies a star, bright and beautiful. Or so she used to be. I say she instead of it, for the star has feelings of her own. For a long time that star had been muse and source of heat and had seen many transformations but none like the ones that eventually left her alone."

Thus had spoken the elder Peter Vos. He was an old man, 94 Earth Years (E.Y.) old. Elder Vos was addressing a small group of children, aboard the Exodus III, a large spaceship capable of carrying 12 million people. It was in fact one of the many spaceships created on Earth to try to evacuate the survivors of the Winter Holocaust of 2981. Elder Vos was one of the few aboard the various ships that still remembered what Earth was like before they had to leave 82 E.Y. ago. Peter Vos was 12 then and, during those 82 E.Y. he had been one of the leaders of the large group of Earthlings that were looking for a new home. Now, he was regarded with respect by all present commanders of the fleet of ships and was often contacted when important decision making matters came about. But Vos, now was addressing a class of children, who were asking various questions specifically about Earth. Questions like what happened, why did people had to leave what happened to the others, were questions that the children wanted to now. It was part of who they were. And Vos, being one of the few who remembered, was the one whom to ask.

Carlos @ 07.03.2004

The children were all very excited at having such a respected man in their classroom that day. Vos was also happy simply because he felt that his knowledge should go back to the young in order to learn. That day, a girl asked Vos what had happened and how did Earth really look like, since she only knew what could be seen from the data discs. The children really wanted to hear it from a person who actually lived on earth.

Vos thought for a moment and then explained:

“Earth was a beautiful place. I used to go running around and playing with my friends on a farm that was owned by my father. There were large trees that would lose most of their leaves in the winter, we had animals, horses and cows mainly, a few ducks. There was a small stream that flowed through the farm. It was beautiful. In the summer we had honey made from the bees and everything was beautifully green. In the winter, although most days were gray, we used to have snow and what fun it was. We used to go outside and would play in the snow, throwing snowballs at each other. Then we would go to my house where my mother would prepare us something to eat before my friends had to return home. Sometimes we would go ice-skating in a nearby lake. I know that you all can do this in the Holo-Chambers, but it isn’t quite the same.”

Vos stopped to look at all of the children. They were enthralled by his words, after all, Peter Vos had always been a nice man, very sure of himself and that was transmitted to others. He had a deep, strong voice that was so very amiable

Vos went on:

“Sometimes I’d go and watch our own zoolid. My father decided to upgrade the original one at the farm. You see… he was a climate scientist. As you probably saw in the data discs, in the Visioning Centre, some of the modern farms featured a large Zoolid with the hovering trees and self breeding plants and flowers. The trees were used to manipulate local climate, and the roots could be seen and touched. You can see them here especially in the artificial tropical zone, at level 3, where the climate is recreated. They’re usually 4 to 5 above the ground and rather strange looking! Biologists control these trees through their roots. In my farm, the animals were also allowed to wander in the Zoolid. We had exquisite birds, mutations and evolutions from previous species. Some of the new bird species are actually being studied here on the science level. Besides the Zoolid, we had a big playground which was used to play all kinds of sports with my friends.”

“Earth, oh, it was amazing. At the time I was too young to understand anything about politics but I did understand later. You see, by then, Earth had become a stable place, wars and famine had been things of the past, but nothing is ever easy in the human spirit. As you well know, the Aleons came to us when Earth was quite unstable, in 2437. They helped us and that led to a long period of peace. It seemed that everything was better and the various countries were now converging and uniting onto one. The Aleons gave a lot to us and we welcomed them among us and through their science and technology we developed the first Halan. The Halans had clearly the best of both worlds and were accepted in our society easily. And so, for centuries everything seemed great.”

At that point a voice was heard through the Wall Communications Device, generally called Wacode: “Counselor Vos, you are expected in the counsel room at level 1.” Vos, was slightly surprised at having been called but he did not show it. He bade goodbye to the children, promising them to finish his story, and theirs, very soon, and left.

Hugo and Carlos @ 15.03.2004

Vos was a tall man, with a thick grey hair. He was still quite powerful. Human kind had significantly increased life expectancy and the lifetime of a Terran is now usually 105 years. His eyes were peaceful and green, and had an indefinable power. All his life he was able to distinguish dream from reality, but always relied on dreams to progress through the ages. He was a scientist, but also a humanist, never thinking about progress before human stability. Although, for the last 50 years, a rush was going on, a rush for finding a new home, and high tech was the only way out.

Vos was approaching the council room at level 1 . The area had a few guardians, mechanical devices to protect the area. Anyway, there wasn’t a tight security, since peace reigned on board the Exodus. But in a floating world so big, there was no way to keep an eye on everyone. Rumours of disturbances were being heard, and some dared to talk about a group of terrans conspiring against Halans. Jealously? Perhaps, but the human imagination was always more fertile than the Halans.

The council level was an open area, with several defined spaces, each with a different purpose. There were no big buildings there, but open spaces. The only complex was the council building, carefully crafted from marble.

Vos entered the counsel glass doors, opening fast as he came near, and spoke with Mrs. Dorothy, the gentle voice heard on the loudspeakers and the "host" of the council.

-Good morning VOS! Leython is awaiting you.

-Thank you Dorothy.

Vos entered the evator:

-Councel room – said Vos.

-Good morning Dr. Vos. Have a nice stay - Said the evator.

-Vos, so glad to see you – said Dr. Leython. Sorry for interrupting your meeting with the children. I heard they were mesmerised by your words, as always.

-Whenever I speak of earth, I guess I let me myself go!

-Vos the reason I asked you to come here is this. From what the science level told me, the Halans have been detecting some unusual vibes from an unknown system, near the Orion galaxy. Some even tried to reach that specific place but with no success. They only see a "black wall", just like something is trying to stop them.

-Strange, that system has never been detected before? I mean, you’ve never received any messages from that place?

-No, none whatsoever.

-Well, I recommend the use of the TDO, with 2 or 3 Halans. If no results are found we’ll then try a more traditional approach.

-Leython, do you think this could be related to the same messages received 50 years ago, from the stardust micro system?

-Don’t see the connection. These are too far apart. The stardust system is 10000 light years away from Orion.

-You know, Some Halans have told me, through the years, that they see something indefinable in their dreams. Some even speak of a Star. Even myself sometimes feel strange while sleeping, you know, like something is trying to get inside my mind.

-Well I’m going right now to the science level and coordinate the Halans travel.

Vos bade goodbye, and went to the science centre. On his way he passed by the Paradise Gardens, on level 6, in order to think about the next steps.

The gardens on Exodus III are majestic, with an incredible array of flowers and plants. The dwarf trees, often compared to the bonsai on old Earth have a especial treatment area. The hovering trees are also common, providing a kind of microclimate in their occupied 1000 m2. The "double eyed" flowers, need more space between each other. These are quite interesting, since they require an open view, as if they needed a wide free space to survive. The needle trees, with their thin branches and colourful fruits, also deserve a special area for maintenance. But what really amazes people is the new breed of parachutes. The nature engineers at the science level recently developed these peculiar flowers. They have a certain "bell" look in the morning, but as the artificial satellite gain strength, similar to the earth’s sun, the flowers open, and every hour an organic capsule, with an exotic perfume, is fired by the flower. This capsule opens, in mid air, just like the old parachutes on earth.

A boy, 5 EY old, walked towards Vos...

@ 30.12.2004

A boy, 5 EY old, walked towards VOS:

- Hello! My name is Guiny. I am 5 EY old and I was attending your meeting with us. I just came from my traveling class. Did you like your school back on earth? Where was it?

- Yes, very much -Vos replied. Some of our teachers were already Halans, the first born, you know. Although we, humans, couldn’t learn how to travel, they show us mapped images of the places they were able to visit. Later, on the 4th grade, our scientist managed to recreate the travelling experience through a digital/organic equipment, the TDO. This was used in our travelling classes. Our school was located nearby, at Tytesville, 20 km of the main city, Galia.

- Did you like your colleagues?

- Sure. Some were like you, Halans. They were as peaceful and friendly as you are. We played a lot, and our favourite game was football. Did you know that this game is older than the Exodus I? Yes, we have old discs containing great football games. I can show them later if you’d like. The children were thrilled but Guiny seemed interested in another issue.

- Have you seen the Star? – asked Guiny.

Vos wasn’t expecting this question and hesitated for moments.

- Yes… you’re not referring to our old sun, are you?

- No.

- How did you hear about it? - asked Vos, intrigued.

- I see her in dreams… I prefer this way, because when I travel and try to reach that place, I feel quite bad. It’s like the Star is sending bad emotions. My mom says not to go there. She says the star is bad… I guess no one ever saw the micro system. My Mom says she rules the system and doesn’t let it reach out.

- I’m not sure about that – replied Vos – I believe that those strange patterns, emanating from the so called micro system, only started in 2300… at least that’s when they were detected.

In an attempt to drive the conversation to another are, VOS asked about the traveling class….

TO BE CONTINUED.....

@ 21.08.2004

Ships:

    Exodus: I, II, III, IV, V – capable of carrying 12 million people each. Exodus III leader of Terrans
    Victory: I, II, III – 550 Thousand men. Battleship (very large). Carries fighters.
    Excelsior: Red, Blue, Green, Yellow. 250 Thousand Men. Smaller battleships. Carries fighters.
        > Red: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
        > Blue: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
        > Green: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
        > Yellow: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
    Scouts: I, II, III, IV, V, VI. 50 men each. Light armour, light weaponry. Speed, agility. Large fuel tanks.
    Freedom: Red, Blue, Green. 400 Thousand men. Mixed function; warship; explorer; science.
        > Red: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
        > Blue: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
        > Green: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

6 other ships:
    Enterprise, Nautilus, Cleopatra, Julius Caesar, Gandhi, Nervais-K’taq: Older ships. 100 thousand passengers. Some defence. Various uses, including Universities in the speciality:
        > Enterprise: Engineering.
        > Nautilus: Science.
        > Cleopatra: History, Geography, Archaeology, Xeno-artifacts.
        > Julius Caesar: Ground Troops carrier and Military School.
        > Gandhi: Diplomacy and Politics University.
        > Nervais-K’taq: Medical School.

@ 21.08.2004

This hidden system was detected by The Tellers while developing the Exodus III. Nearby space was being monitored constantly, and a deflection of space was detected near Orion. The tellers were cloned beings, whose purpose was space exploration and monitoring. They made use of the Emagnetic devices for space travel.

@ 21.08.2004