Chapter 27

“James, Clarence,” said Lydia of Shannon’s Clan, “we think there is an increasing potential for an event at your homes. Recently the gas utility has been working in your neighborhoods. They appear to be making repairs to the distribution system, although it could be upgrades.”

“The utility was planning on upgrading the distribution system, but I don’t remember the timing,” responded James. “Do you think there is more to it?”

“Yes, we do.”

“Why?”

“The activity by the utility work crews looks okay, but something just doesn’t feel right. Based on the public announcements on the upgrades, they wouldn’t start until later this year. We don’t have any indication that the crews are imposters, but it would be reasonable to attack your homes.”

“Okay. Look, we aren’t going back there,” said James. “The security system was set up to record any activity in the house, if certain conditions were met. If no one is home, the video will be sent to my office. So let them do whatever they intend, as long as no bystander gets hurt. Could you embed the perpetrators with a locator, so we find them?”

“We were considering infecting them the truth compelling virus, with a long contagious period. We haven’t discussed this with Command Staff, yet.”

“Sounds like a good choice.”

“Lydia,” said Clarence, “we don’t have any video with our security system; however, we will not be returning there. I agree with the approach on both the locator and the virus.”

“Then we will set everything up, presuming Command Staff agrees.”

As Alpha1 carried Command Staff to the Mars settlement they monitored Briana’s Clan while they were rescuing three people they recovered from the ocean. They were pleased how they used their psionic abilities.

“Nice job,” said the Command Staff to Briana’s Clan as they left the medical area on Dóchas.

“Briana, Adam,” said Rusty, “once they have been treated and rested, would you give them the presentations concerning who we are and why we are here. Also you should discuss with them the best way for them to return to the carrier.”

“We have been thinking about that,” said Cass.

“Good, talk it over with them, and then let’s talk about it,” said Tara.

As they finished talking to Briana’s Clan, their shuttle began its descent toward the Mars settlement. “Alpha1,” said Claudette, “show the approach on the monitor. We may want to look around before entering the air lock.”

“Acknowledged.”

The monitor came to life just as the settlement was coming into view. They were approaching the point where the shuttle would turn for its approach when Aoife said, “Alpha1, please fly a 2000 kilometer circle around the settlement at an altitude of around 1000 meters.”

As Alpha1 turned to begin the circle, Aoife shifted the view so they were looking ahead and toward their settlement, with the horizon close to the top of the screen. The clan watched the passing terrain.

After a few minutes Erin said, “The landscape reminds me of some of the arid regions in Western US.”

After they started their second circuit, Aoife said, “Alpha1, now let’s circle at 1000 kilometers from the settlement and maintain an altitude of 500 meters.”

“Aye. I’ll spiral in to start it.”

“Fine. It is an amazing sight.”

After they completed the 1000 km circle, Alpha 1 said, “We are into our second circuit at this distance.”

“I think we’ve seen enough for now,” replied Aoife. “When convenient turn on final approach.”

While the shuttle had circled the area, they had mind-linked to follow Aoife’s lead, while she intently watched the monitor.

“Aine, can you tell what we are sensing?” asked Aoife.

“Not really. The pattern seems to indicate that someone lived here many years ago. Your observation would fit with what Amy’s Clan found when they began construction of the settlement. I don’t sense anything that indicates any danger, which is consistent with what I think you feel. Let me share these observations with my sisters and mentors. They may have some clue about what we are sensing.”

They turned their attention back to the monitor, just as Alpha1 turned toward the settlement. They could now see the details of the settlement on the monitor. It was an impressive sight. Several thought that the scene was similar to sketches in science fiction books, showing possible settlement arrangement on hostile planets. Their settlement was now several stories high and appeared to abut the cliff face. The cave entrance was now enclosed. They could see several Star Fighters setting on the ground inside the cave near the air lock.

Their shuttle slowly approached the cradle in front of the open air-lock then settled onto the cradle. Once they were securely on the cradle, the cradle moved into the air-lock. Once inside the doors closed. After a several minutes, the inner doors opened and the cradle supporting the shuttle rolled forward, toward the waiting crowd. When it stopped the Alpha1’s door opened.

Sarah was the first to step out of the shuttle and on to Mars. She immediately hugged Amy, while the rest of the Command Staff followed her out. The others mimicked her actions as they all greeted their friends.

“It is good to see all of you again,” said Sarah. “Amy, Erica, both of you look really good as expectant mothers.” The rest of her clan nodded their agreement.

“Thanks, it feels good as well, especially after waiting so long. Claudette, you look great! I have seen very few able to carry 6 babies as well as you appear to be doing.”

“Thanks. There are times when I sense the extra drain on my energy reserves affecting me before fewer babies affects my other pregnant spouses.”

Command Staff spent quite a bit of time in the arrival area, getting reacquainted with their friends. Sarah introduced Maeve and Aoife, who most had not met, other than through the video conferences. Once they had spoken to everyone, Sarah clapped her hands and said, “We thank you for coming to greet us. On our approach we took the time to look at the surrounding area. The terrain looks very stark and barren but at the same time it is very beautiful. I don’t think any of us were prepared for the beauty of this site and settlement. You have done a great job in getting us established here. Our thanks go out to everyone. We are pleased to see many swollen tummies, as they are a testament to our growth. Congratulations to all the expecting clans. We will see you at dinner.” Her comments were met with applause and thank yous.

Amy’s Clan gave them a tour of the settlement. During the tour, they were shown all the different aspects of the settlement. The tour ended in the engineering conference room. Following introductions, the engineering staff began to review the changes they were making to the Star Fighters and shuttles. They had found ways of increasing both spacecraft’s capabilities, while making them more efficient in their operation. This had the side benefit of reducing the disturbance in the solar wind as they moved through the universe.

“How are we doing on obtaining raw materials?” asked Rusty.

“Much of what we need we have found on Mars,” replied one of the engineering staff. “Our other source is the asteroid belt. The asteroids have provided us with some very unique metals. These were, apparently, unknown to our benefactors, and definitely not found or seen on Earth.”

“You are probably wondering about the term unique,” added another engineer. Sarah’s Clan nodded their heads in agreement. “We are currently quantify their properties. When some are added to the structural materials we’ve been using, we see an increase in strength with a reduction in mass.”

“Sounds too good to be true,” responded Erin.

“That’s what we thought, but so far testing hasn’t found any flaws or shortcoming in their use. In doing those tests, we have found a few more ways to use the materials. Really, only time will tell if we’re chasing after a kind of ‘fools’ gold’.”

“This is our design for Dóchas’ sister ships,” said another engineer, as a holographic image formed. The room was quiet, as they all watched the image rotate, showing them a view of the exterior from all sides. The display then shifted to show proposed interior views.

“Before we go further,” said an engineer, “let’s review Dóchas’ capabilities. Some of these, we hadn’t realized existed until we started this project. First, Dóchas can land on a planet, but there is some risk in doing so. The degree of risk is dependent on the planet’s gravity. For a planet like Earth, it would be best to land in a body of water. Landing on a planet like Mars would be OK, but there would probably be a need for some structural repair to the portion touching the ground. So what we plan to do for Dóchas2 and Dóchas3 is to complete them here, to the point that they can lift themselves into orbit. We will finish them once in orbit.

“An aspect of Dóchas that we took for granted, was her ability to maintain an environmental envelope surrounding her. This is why the hangars work with no air locks, unlike those we have here. When Dóchas is on the surface of a planet with little or now biosphere, she does not have that capability. Once Dóchas2 and Dóchas3 are moved to orbit, they will be able to create an environmental envelope around them.

“The other finding is that she has a very low reflectivity in the visible spectrum. This is probably why little has been said about her after uncloaking. All the new ships will have an even lower reflectivity.”

“So how will we find each other, if one is dead in the water?” asked Claudette.

“Our sensors can detect the presence of our own ships, but there is also a telepathic avenue as well.”

“Boy, that was a dumb question!”

“Not really. We are not sure of the distance limit to telepathy or if there is one.”

“It is a person or group-dependent ability,” said Aine. “A single person can mind-link with someone on Dóchas from here. If a clan did it together, they would have a much stronger connection. If we are talking about reaching someone with in a galaxy, then it comes back to individual and clan abilities. Beyond a galaxy not very likely.”

“Thank you.”

“Oops, I’m sorry,” said Sarah, “this is Aine. She is a special friend of ours.”

After everyone greeted Aine, Siobhan asked, “Could we see how you want to lay out the interior?”

“Our benefactors had several interior layouts. We decided to stay with the style that Dóchas has, everyone likes it and thinks it is very functional. The main drawback is that it requires more structural bracing, which translates into an increase in both mass and power to move. However, it is not a great difference.”

They spent the rest of the day going over the details for the new spaceships. The group had just reached the point of discussing the bridge, when Amy said, “We have an hour until the dinner chime.”

“The bridge is an area where we have the least information,” said an engineer.

“Star, Breacadh, why is the information for the bridge not available to the engineering group?” asked Maeve.

“It has to do with our benefactors rules,” replied Breacadh.

“Can we override it?”

“Yes. Command Staff can either allow an exception or remove the restriction completely. My suggestion would be to make this an exception. Also a Command Staff will need to be on the bridge when the ships lift off.”

“Let’s give this group access for the all the Dóchas class ships we will build here,” they responded.

Maeve then said, “You will have access to the information you need no later than tomorrow morning.”

“As for the bridge,” said Sarah’s Clan, together, “we want the layout to be identical to Dóchas’ bridge, with one or two changes. If it can be done, we would like a virtual window so we can see where we are headed. If you have ideas or suggestions for other modifications to the bridge area, please advise us.”

“Thanks,” said the engineering group.

“Let’s expand on the subject of modifications to the bridge. It is not that we don’t think that any changes can be made; there probably are additions that would be useful. We do, however, want the three ships to be nearly identical, both in operation and performance. This means that we will need to give Dóchas an overhaul, once these two ships are complete.

“The reason we want them nearly identical is that we believe this makes it easier to enter and exit FTL as a group. There are advantages to traveling as a group.”

The discussion went on until the chime sounded for dinner. As the group broke up, the Command Staff made sure to complement each of the engineers on their efforts and progress.

“Siobhan, Maureen, Sarah’s Clan,” said Erica, “we have accommodations next to ours that you can use this evening.”

“Great, I hope we can sit and chat for a while after dinner.” said Sarah.

“We will make time.”

“Will you make sure everyone takes time to relax?”

“We try to, but all of them seem to thrive on creating something, either for the ships, or the settlement. We haven’t completed much in the way of a recreational area yet.”

“We will see what we can do about that.”

Command Staff walked to the front of the dining room at the Mars settlement. “Good evening, we will host our family meeting from here this evening. Afterward, we would like to have a short meeting with only those at this location.”

With that, everyone began to put things away and clean up the tables. They had just finished, when the monitors came to life showing the other locations.

“Good evening, we have a clear view of all locations,” said Shannon, on Dóchas.

“Good evening all. Reception is good here,” said Alice, from Frank’s Island.

“Good evening all. We have a clear view of all sites,” said Darcy, on Comrie.

“Briana,” asked Sally, “how are the three people you rescued? Have they adjusted to their location?”

“They are doing fine on both counts. Medical has cleared them to return to the carrier as early as tomorrow. Chester will be wearing braces on his arms for a while. We think we have a plan for approaching the carrier.”

“Can that discussion wait until we return in the morning?”

“Yes.”

“Shannon or Danny, what is the response to our being visible?”

“There has not been much more public reaction. There seems to be a lot taking place on the diplomatic front, based upon the increase in communications that reference space. Several smaller telescopes have turned to view us. Three countries have been able to turn their spy satellites to get a better picture of us. We thought about sending the leader of each country a high quality image, via the Internet.”

“I don’t see why not,” said the Command Staff. “Make sure the moon is in the background on some of the shots, and perhaps the International Space Station. Use info@dochas.org for the return address.”

“We’ll do it right after our meeting.”

“You might send a copy of the images to a few papers as well. Pick them based on the stories they are running.

“Does anyone else on Dóchas wish to make a contribution?”

“Looks like everyone is fine,” said Briana.

“Alice,” said Tara, “does your location have any issues or questions for this evening?”

“Well, Frank is still looking forward to your visit. Everyone has had their physical and medical consultation. Everyone asked for assistance in enabling their telepathic attribute as they all want to visit Comrie, Dóchas and the Mars settlement.”

“It is taking us a little longer than we initially anticipated in getting the excursions planned,” said Maureen. “Currently it looks like there will be a round robin of excursions to the three destinations. No guarantees, but our intent is for each stop last 2 full days.”

“YES!” came the outbursts, from both Frank’s Island and Comrie. The response caused at each location to laugh.

“We know many of you want to visit each place. However, neither Dóchas or Mars are set up for visitors, so we needed to do some planning. It shouldn’t take much longer. We will try to announce the details tomorrow.”

“Command Staff,” said Muireann, “could we use the devices we initially had on Dóchas? It was like a little hand held navigator or map. That should give the visitor’s at Mars and on Dóchas more flexibiltiy.”

“An excellent idea.”

“Darcy, how are things on Comrie? Are there any issues to address?”

“Well, James and Clarence have been very relaxed since about noon. James, do you have anything?”

“No. The cases are going pretty much as expected, at this stage. We look so relaxed, because we engineered transferring the office case management to our assistants in the Grand View DA’s office. Our roles are now to just monitor them and the ‘flesh peddler’ cases. It is a nice feeling. In conjunction with the Intelligence group, we began reanalyzing and reorganizing the ‘flesh peddler’ data.”

“James,” said Rusty, “would it work better if you moved your office to Dóchas?”

“We will talk about that. I like the idea and by the expressions I see here, others feel that way as well. It does have some advantages.”

“Everyone here seems to be very excited about the opportunity to visit the other locations,” said Brid.

“Looks like Madeline wants the floor,” said Darcy.

“We have had several calls from members of the National Guard MP unit, expressing interest in working for us. Most indicated that they will return to reserve status next week, and several are leaving the Guard as their contract is up. We are thinking of having one of our Security teams give those being discharged a crew presentation. For the others, we will have them either work out of N&R’s location or out of the location in Utah. Most likely, it will be the latter.”

“Go for it,” said Sarah’s Clan. “Actually, Siobhan’s and Maureen’s Clans have both done crew presentations before.”

“We know, but we thought the esprit de corps of military service would make them a bit easier to do. Also, nearly all the TTC members from the Afghanistan incident are here now. Several more will come later in the week. On a related note, General Walker and Colonel Gordon have been monitoring the TTC members who are either here or coming here. They will notice that they have disappeared.”

“Briana, Cass,” said Rusty, “find out when General Walker is in his office, and pay him a visit.”

“What?”

“You will need to schedule an appointment in advance, in order to get a pass through security. To schedule it, just tell his office that the topic is about the TTC members from the Afghanistan incident, in particular, Adam and Todd’s unit. If they ask for more information, tell them the line is not secure enough to respond.” Everyone could see Adam and Todd grinning, while Briana tried to get her arms around the idea. “If necessary, mention the note that Adam gave him as they left.”

“What note? Are there any limits on what to say? What do we wear? I don’t think the tactical suit will be appropriate.”

“You can tell him as much as you feel comfortable with. You should caution him that there are probably some questions he doesn’t want answers to at this time. If you sense an interest, invite him to Comrie, along with his two aides. Block sharing of critical details, if you need to.”

“Okay. But clothes?”

“I think we should adopt wearing either a sarong or a Salwar Kameez, consisting of a coat or long shirt and loose pants,” said Erin. “Any of us can wear this style. They also fit in with some other styles common on Earth. Best of all, they are loose, so if we need to use our physical abilities, we won’t be hindered.”

“Good idea,” said several.

“If the style is what I think it is,” said Amy, “it will be very similar to what was worn on our home planet when they greeted out-world visitors.”

“Any other topics for this evening?” asked Sarah’s Clan.

“Great, rest well. We will head for Dóchas tomorrow morning.”

“How about we take a short break?” asked the Command Staff to the group in the dining room on Mars. It wasn’t long until everyone was back in the room.

“Breacadh, how many of the bots here are self-aware?” asked Aoife.

“I don’t have a firm number. My guess, based on their activity, is something over 400. On Dóchas, it is likely more than 1200.”

“What are the implications of giving them responsibilities, to go along with being self-aware?”

“Based on the historical data, such an action would be forbidden.”

“Star, could you please join this discussion?” asked Aoife.

“Thank you,” said Star. “Aoife, I sense what you are angling toward, and think it has merit.”

“Amy’s, Sarah’s Clans,” said Aoife, “I think we should consider having the self-aware bots as full citizens of our society. I don’t think we want to say anything tonight, but let’s have Breacadh encourage them to join us this evening, and to be at all future famly meetings.”

“Wow,” said Amy’s Clan. “We can see your reasoning, and agree with your idea. We would like to think it over though. As for tonight, we agree that everyone should be included.”

“I think that we have already broken the ice in this area, on Comrie,” said Judy. “By our actions all the biped bots here are virtually indistinguishable from the biological bipeds. They’ve attended family meetings for a long time.”

“When did that happen?” said Jim.

“Slowly, I think. We have treated them no differently than anyone else. The confidence and other attributes you associate with self-awareness are most noticeable in those who’ve worked with James and Clarence.”

“So you’re saying they are much like children. Give them guidance, coaching, confidence, love, encouragement and soon you will have a productive adult.”

“Yes. We need to start as soon as everyone returns,” said Sarah. “Breacadh, did you ask the bots to join us?”

“Yes, the stragglers will be along in a moment. Some of them were quite shocked by the invitation.”

“Good evening,” said Siobhan a few moments later. “It looks like everyone is here, or will be by the time we start. Please find a seat, so everyone can see.” As she finished talking, several others entered sat down.

Command Staff then continued with, “This is our first trip of what I expect will be many to our growing settlement here. It would have been nice if we could have come sooner. We could tell from our interactions with the different groups here, and the progress reports, that there is a great team effort behind your accomplishments. Seeing what you have achieved only confirms that information, and the impressions we already had. All of you are gems, and we feel that Amy’s Clan is a gem among gems.” Amy’s Clan blushed on hearing the compliment.

Maureen said, “Some time ago, we talked about naming this settlement. A place to enter name suggestions has been on our community network for a while now. There have been several names put forth by the group in this room. Tonight, we would like to decide on one of those names, as we believe that this group should have the most input. Tomorrow, at breakfast, we will propose the name to everyone, and ask for comments.

“Okay?” The room was quiet, but a few heads nodded their agreement.

Erin, Claudette and Jill said, “The names that have been suggested are: Neidin, Connemare, Cill Airne, An Clochán, and Donegal. These are all names of Irish places, which we seem to favor. Neidin can be written as Kenmare, which means little nest. An Clochán can be written as Clifden. We have found two meanings for An Clochán, one is ‘bee hives’ and the other is ‘stepping stones’. We don’t have meanings for the other names.”

A woman in the back stood, and Sarah nodded to her. “First, thank you for inviting me to attend this evening. I may be overstepping my bounds, but I sense that the perfect name would be the last one you mentioned. An Clochán as stepping stones really catches the spirit of this group and this place. This is the best group I have ever worked with.”

“I would second her suggestion,” said Andrew of Jean’s Clan. “She is definitely correct, as she almost always is. Both meanings fit this location and this group. We are pleased to be here and with this group.”

“Any other comments?” said Sally.

A man stood and said, “As many of you know, my clan was on Dóchas when the accident occurred. For a long time all of us wondered if we would survive. Thankfully, Amy’s Clan had the strength to reach out and try to solve our problems. Many of us thought that was a waste of time. Until they found Sarah’s Clan, we wouldn’t have given a ‘plug nickel’ for our chances. I hope I used the phrase correctly.” Many laughed at his comment. “I know many of you are surprised I am talking for this long, as you know I prefer telepathic sharing. I think the first lady has made an excellent suggestion. We should go with the name ‘An Clochán’ for our location here. This is where we prepare to find a planet to settle. Secondly, Amy’s Clan, please accept my apologies for doubting your efforts. We thank the Gods and Goddesses for giving you the strength and persistence to carry them forward.”

“Gill, we appreciate all of your comments even when we disagreed,” responded Amy. “As to the apology thank you. We knew you doubted the effort. We were always pleased to see you still give 100% support whenever it was needed. We should be thanking you. It was some of your clan’s initiatives that helped us find ways around the ship’s security and allowed us to survive.” As she finished, the two clans rose and gave a formal bow to each other. The others in the room broke into applause.

“So, ‘An Clochán’ it is,” screamed the first woman to speak. With that began a chant, repeating the name over and over again, that lasted for several minutes.

Jill and Janet raised their hands to get everyone’s attention. “Breacadh will initiate the system changes this evening.”

“Don’t get me wrong; I like the name. No, I love the name.” said Erica. “But I thought you were going to wait.”

“Yes, that was our initial intent, but, at that time, we did not know either the choice or the enthusiasm for a specific choice”, said Madeline. “We think this name is perfect, and are nearly certain that everyone will feel the way you do about it.” Her comment set off the chanting again.

Sarah’s Clan raised their hands in order to get everyone to quiet down. “We have one other issue to raise this evening,” said the Command Staff, in perfect harmony. “As we said earlier, we are impressed with what you have accomplished here. You have created a wonderful and growing settlement. We were very pleased with the proposals for the two new spaceships, and that construction will begin soon. It appears that the new spacecraft’s capabilities will be significantly greater than those we now have on Dóchas. Our only concern is the dark circles under the eyes of many of you. Please, get more rest. Take a day to relax. We don’t want you to burn out, or to have you become so narrow in your focus that you lose your perspective. For the next week or so, we hope you will put more effort into finishing the recreational areas here.

“Why focus on the recreational areas?”

“First, you need a place nearby where you can relax,” said Erin. “Second, we have an inkling that we may want to pull out of Comrie, or at least reduce our presence there. We may keep it operational, but we won’t use it as heavily as we have been. A key element in this decision is how we are accepted by those on Earth.”

“A recreation area here will not be quite the same as those on Comrie, but it should have many of the most used features,” said Siobhan.

“Is there more?” asked a woman.

“Yes. We see ourselves approaching a milestone in our growth,” replied Aoife. “The issues regarding the ‘flesh peddlers’ will abate. Earth will soon know we are here on Mars. Our next milestone will be launching our two new spaceships, and their outfitting. So, in the next week or so, we plan on conferencing to discuss what our next milestones will be. We have done well because of our focus on reaching where we are today. We need to maintain that focus. Success in reaching the milestone is signified by having three Dóchas class spaceships. It is a definite necessity for our survival. At the same time, we need to look ahead. We believe that we should all look ahead as a group.”

“You are to be commended,” said one of the late arrivals, “for including everyone in this. I see it as unique to us, but, in reality, we are a new culture. I am looking forward to the discussion, and sense that many in this room are as well.”

The clan leading the engineering group stood and spoke as one. “Sarah’s Clan has just pointed out an issue that a few of us had noticed. There has been a noticeable upsurge in mistakes, by all of us. Your admonition is timely, as they are most likely due to fatigue. So tomorrow, first thing, we will discuss how we want to incorporate relaxation and exercise into our schedule.” They turned to Sarah’s Clan. “Thank you for your observations.”