Alpha 1472
Authors: Eddie Hastings
I dedicate this bo
ok to Hollie and to Jack.
To the people in my life who have been lost to us.
And to all of the people who are still here and believe.
FOREWARD
This book is not an attempt to discredit the established thinking, nor the world religions that have been in place for many thousands of years. Nor is it an attempt to persuade the reader to change their way of thinking, their lifestyles or their present religious beliefs. It is not even a basis or the creation of a new type of worship. What the author intends to portray is his own personal view, a view that has been formulated over many years of reading, listening and evaluating all of the various information he has come into contact with, information that has allowed him to formulate his own opinions.
As a child I had the opportunity to spend an inordinate amount of time with my grandmother, she was what would be called a god-fearing woman, she would quote the bible to me on any occasion, and it must be said that I did become quite familiar with the stories. As I grew older and became more able to formulate my own interpretations to the stories, my perception of the past and of evolution began to mould itself into the way in which I presently see things. A great influence on my thinking came from watching and developing a great interest in science fiction, from the appalling ‘Plan 9 from outer space’ to the highly technical productions of ‘Star trek’. All of them held a fascination for me.
A vivid imagination is the building block for all good stories, but this book attempts to go beyond mere fiction. It aims to explore my own theories into evolution, religion, the past and the future. It is a possible account that may, or may not offer some answers to those people who feel, as do I, that the way that we have been taught is not the only possible explanation.
1
. The Beginning
Leaning back in his chair, David grasped the back of his neck. He could almost feel the tension. He gave a sigh of relief, leaned forward and switched off his computer. He spun round in his chair, rose to his feet and walked into the
dining room where his wife and their two friends were already beginning the meal. Tonight was a very special occasion for David and Mary, it was their first wedding anniversary and they had asked Alan and Amanda over to celebrate the occasion with them.” I’m sorry that the baby sitter had to let us down” said Amanda. Mary politely emptied her mouth and waved dismissively “don’t be silly, we have plenty of room and besides, we love to have them here”. Lucy and Gary were ten year old twins who had been constant visitors to David and Mary’s since their birth. The frequent break from the children had been good for Alan and Amanda’s relationship, and the twins had no qualms about being here, it was like their second home, they even had their own rooms here. Mary got up from the table and proceeded to clear away the plates that had just been used for the starter,
“Hey you guys haven’t finished”
The twins looked down into their laps dejectedly “It doesn’t matter” said David and then whispered to the twins “I never used to like melon either”
At this they perked up, shuffled in their seats and readied themselves for the main course. David smiled at them, and Alan shook his head, knowing that any further words on the matter would be lost, and so he resigned himself to a submissive, good natured giggle. Mary reappeared at the doorway pushing a hostess trolley. She positioned it at the head of the table and proceeded to place several bowls of food onto the table. When she had retaken her seat she humorously announced “dinner is served”. At this point everyone began to help themselves. As Mary was just about to take her first bite of dinner, the phone rang. “Isn’t it typical, it always rings when you don’t want it to”? She got up and placing her napkin neatly next to her plate, she went into the living room.
David was sitting with his back to the living room door, and although he, Alan, Amanda and the twins were engaged in general conversation, he was more intent on eavesdropping into the one sided conversation that was now taking place in the other room. Although he could not quite make out what was being said, he had worked out the gist of things.
It was about fifteen minutes later before Mary could return to the dining area, by which time the meal was almost over, and everyone was ready for coffee. Mary decided she would warm her dinner later in the microwave, and that now she would join the others in the living room.
As the party walked into the comfortable, spacious living room, Mary turned to the twins and suggested that they went into the outer living room to watch television. The children were pleased, as they were becoming increasingly bored with the adult company. Mary was also pleased as this would give her the opportunity to explain the phone call she had just taken. She sat in the large easy chair next to the fireplace and taking a sip of her coffee she turned to Amanda. “I’m so sorry Amanda; we can’t take the kids to the mountains next week. They are going to be so disappointed”.
At this David stood up from the stereo, looked towards his wife and said “that was the commander on the phone wasn’t it” Mary nodded. Everyone knew what this meant. Mary had been selected, once again, to be the navigator for the next shuttle flight.
David and Mary had met when David’s company had won the contract to build the new reception area at the base where Mary was completing her shuttle training. He had always thought that one day she would give up space flight and concentrate on becoming a mother and wife of an architect. After all, they were comfortably off and it would be no hardship for them to live on the substan
tial income that David enjoyed.
Mary confirmed that it was indeed the commander she had spoken to “they have found another planet and it will soon be in range. The exciting part about this one is that they think that it may be able to support life. I have to leave tomorrow”.
David crossed the room and sat on the arm of his wife’s chair. He put his arm around her shoulder and sat silent for a moment. He hated it when she had to go way, not least for the fact that he held an intense dislike for her job. He did not trust space. He considered that orbiting the planet was one thing, but for his wife to travel to different planets was definitely another. He had always dreaded the thought of losing her, although he had never said so.
There was an awkward silence. Alan and Amanda were aware of David’s feelings and could see from the look on his face that this was not the time to voice an opinion. Everyone looked at Mary, each with a different, yet similar look of puzzlement.
“I have handed in my notice” explained Mary “which becomes effective immediately after this mission”.
To himself David was pleased, and at the same time relieved. He knew how much Mary’s job meant to her, and so as not to give anything away he put on his concerned look, turned to face Mary and began to argue against the decision. “Sweetheart, why? You love that job and you’re damn good at it. You haven’t been fired have you?” Mary let him continue until a smile broke over her face. She could contain herself no longer. David was confused. “I’ve thought long and hard about this, and I am sure that I am doing the right thing” she paused for a while so that she could achieve maximum effect from what she was about to tell everyone. “After all I don’t think that it would be fair of me to be hopping from planet to planet and try to be...the mother of our child.”
The awkward atmosphere that had filled the room minutes earlier was instantly replaced by a stunned, shocked silence. David leaped to his feet and somehow seemed to take Mary with him. Dancing in
circles he was half crying half laughing, trying desperately to speak. “How? When?!” “Calm down, calm down” said Mary. After a few more minutes of jubilation they sat back down in their original places. This time David was closer to his wife and squeezing her shoulder much more tightly. “I’ve been for all of the tests, they were positive and you are going to be a father.
“Well” said David proudly, “I
think that this is the time to open that special bottle of champagne that we have been saving for just such an occasion”. By the time David had crossed to the drinks cabinet the children had entered the room to see what all of the commotion was about. Amanda proceeded to tell the youngsters the good news, which sparked another wave of excited dancing and cheering. David had poured drinks for everyone and was attempting to weave his way through dancing children to deliver one glass to each of his friends and to his wife. “I think that on this occasion even you two can have a drop” He gave a small glass to each of the children and all six raised their glasses. David stood in the middle of the room facing everyone. He composed himself, and quietly said, “To life, to the future, to good friends and to my darling wife. . . .Thank you”. “Here here” said everyone in unison and began to drink. Lucy didn’t like the champagne as was evident from the grimace that spread across her face. Gary however gulped down his drink and asked Lucy whether she was going to drink hers. When she said that she wasn’t he proceeded to dispatch her glass in much the same manner. Everyone laughed then the children returned to watch the rest of their program.
The rest of the evening was taken up with initial planning for the forthcoming event and with the drinking of more celebratory champagne.
Many names for the new baby were discussed, and finally it was sort of agreed that if it were to be a girl it would be named Susan and if it was a boy, Jeremy. David secretly hoped it would be a Jeremy.
Before anyone had noticed the time, three bottles of champagne had been consumed, and the children had all but been forgotten. “Oh well” Alan sighed, “we have an early start and a long journey tomorrow so I think, that it must be bedtime for us”. Everyone agreed, and the usual all hands to the deck ensued to make tidy the living room. Turning out the lights they moved into the outer living room where the children had fallen asleep in front of the television The video was still playing a program called ‘the art of magic’ that the children had been watching earlier. David quipped to Alan that he was rapidly tiring of this particular tape as it was all that was played when Lucy and Gary were visiting. The two men then picked up a child each and put them to bed. As they quietly closed the door to the children’s rooms Alan looked at David and said “your turn soon old man”, David smiled, bade Alan good night and disappeared into his own room.
By the time that Alan, Amanda and the twins had come downstairs. Mary and David had finished their breakfast and had prepared the same meal for the others. They all sat and chatted until it was time for the Andersons to depart.
The party of friends slowly walked to the cruiser. As they walked they made plans to spend time on the coast with Alan and Amanda as soon as Mary’s mission: was over.
At the cruiser handshakes, kisses and hugs were exchanged. Tears were wiped away as the Andersons got into the car and pulled silently out of the drive. As
they drove away Amanda pressed herself against the window to wave a last farewell, an uneasy feeling came over her. Somehow, this time things felt different. For some reason she felt that this would be the last time that she would be saying goodbye to her friends. To her it almost felt like it was the end. She shrugged away a cold shiver, dismissed her thoughts and settled down to the journey.
Back in the house, the atmosphere was one of peace and quiet. David and Mary stood for a while and hugged each other. After a short time, their eyes met, they nodded and together they said “it’s that time”. They burst into giggles, kissed briefly, and began to busy themselves preparing for their respective day ahead. They had done everything possible to delay the inevitable. But now the time had come. Locking the front door, David followed Mary to the two cruisers that were parked at the top of the driveway. They stood between the two cars and embraced passionately. After a few minutes they leant back in each others arms “See you in three weeks” said David. “I’ll be back before you know it”. Mary replied. There was an obvious tear just about to run down her face. David raised a hand and caught the tear on his index finger, then he drank the tear from his finger and placed his hand over Mary’s mouth.