In interstellar space, nothing moved. Nothing changed.
One atom per cubic mile, and so many dark miles. More than the human brain could fathom.
Yet, in all directions, there was light. Billions of years of nuclear fires dotted the universe like brilliant lonely islands. Stars hugged their planets. Gravity swept the vast distances clean.
But in the tiniest speck of the tiniest fraction of the tiniest sliver of space, something did move. A small vehicle like a bloated coffin arrowed forward at terrifying speed. Of course, in interstellar space, terrifying speed felt like the tick of a second in the course of a year. Insignificant. Pointless. A race standing still. But back on Earth, that kind of speed would vaporize the craft in a millisecond if it ever touched the atmosphere again.
Inside SEED4611, the cargo slept. (If the near-arrest of molecules could be called sleep.) A sixteen year old woman. Her womb impregnated with a male fetus unrelated to her. The systems didn't maintain the cold. The nothingness provided the absolute freeze.
SEED4611 was launched with energy for one purpose alone. The on-board system processed one burst of data each year. Two hundred and fifty seven years ago, the light of one star in the look-zone registered a tiny increase in magnitude. A tiny increase greater than the other stars. SEED4611 used the stored energy to delicately steer toward it, slower than a glacier on Earth. Now, it only had to maintain. Now, it only had to collect the thin streams photons striking its dark, metal skin. Now, it only had to wait.
On to Part 2.
16 comments:
Ooh! I want more! Now!!!! [I sound like my two year old!]
It reads very well Jason. Moved me right into the the cosmos and pulled directly into Seed 4611.
What is the significance of the number if any?
oooo, very futuristic by the sounds... looking forward to more.
and i tought i disliked scifi. in fact, i liked it very much. you drew me in there.
re: numbers: i found the numbers 1.2.3 within this 4611.
it's like 'something getting started...'
it's just my thought :)
Now that's a start. We are not alone. There's nothing I am more sure of. :)
This is good.
You have a really solid grip on this genre. Your words read mechanically, as they should. So often sci-fi loses its strength when the writer loses his ability to keep that scientific, futuristic voice in the writing, if that is what the piece calls for. I think this piece does call for that, and it works perfectly.
Looking forward to part 2.
Nevine
Reminds me of some reading I've done on "star seeds" as well as Stephenie Meyer's "The Host." Not the same, but reminds me of it. Very fascinating stuff.
Looking forward to what happens with this story.
Whoa... I got goose bumps! Great premise here. Look forward to the second part.
Jason, I have been catching up. Wanted to say about "Look" that is is such a revealing poem. I know how cathartic your poems can be for you. You seem to be working through so much. I think you are coming into the understanding that you are not responsible for what you thought or believed as a child, but rather you were led to think that way.
wobbling on a tiny iceberg
baited and switched
picked free by your needs
on an icy sea
Do you see yourself as a sort of sacfifice? Perhaps the dynamic you speak of, lived off of your energy, and left you too weak to be yourself. I don't know.
I have such faith in you, Jason. I know you will try and you will succeed.
This is great voice for sci-fi. I want more! I'm wondering, too, about the significance of the number, but sometimes those things come clear later...
Tabitha, glad it whet your appetite. :)
Walking Man, this opening was tough to balance. I wanted an interesting perspective, but it still needed to be anchored in action.
Shadow, more parts are on the way!
Szelsofa, I haven't read much sci-fi, so I'm probably not doing it "right." ;) It will be C.O.N. style.
Aniket, I suspect you're right about that.
Bernita, thank you!
Nevine, very gratifying, thanks. :) I don't do much sci-fi, but I do love science. I should probably embrace it more. I suspect I'll never be a straight genre writer, though.
Leah, I'm looking forward to letting you experience this world.
Kaye, goosebumps are cool. :) Regarding my poem, thanks for the observations and thoughts! In retrospect, I don't think I was a sacrifice, but I was an unwitting wish for healing. But a child can never heal parents whose own childhoods were damaged. It only robs the child of security. I always prided myself in assuming adult roles so young, but it left a piece of me confused and susceptible to anxiety. To meet me, you'd never see it, though. It works in the background.
Karen, SEED is actually an acronym. ;) Not that it's vital to story....
A science fiction story, with twists and turns and future births. Love the beginning.
Lakeviewer, thanks! Twists and turns are in store.
Hmmm... a very interesting idea, Jason. I love it! It gives me goosebumps as it pulls me with it into the greatness of the Cosmos...
So is this just one of the many "seeds" sent from Earth to the stars? Is the girl carrying her future husband? Fascinating...
SEED 4611?? I can almost hear it screaming 'I'm a name not a number!'
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