Peter Prellwitz - Shards Book One

She shrugged.? No one really knows, which by itself is a frightening indication. We do know it's nearly complete here on Earth. After the Terran/Martian Wars, the world government was destroyed. The planet had united under a common government as far back as 2209, but the more powerful countries, the United States, Japan, Brazil and Australia, remained autonomous. But then singularity drives were invented in 2243, and the first hyperspace corridor was established to a class M planet in 2267. And that changed Earth's future forever."

"I had wondered if space travel to other solar systems had been perfected. There seemed to be indicators in some of the things I looked at in the puterverse, but there were also very few facts."

"That's for two reasons. First is your current access level. There's not a whole lot you can find out at three limited four. As you feel more comfortable with the system, and we feel more comfortable with you, that access will be increased.

"The second reason is that space travel is not that important to us. Everyone who wanted to leave the planet did. The singularity drive ships-we call them ball chasers-allowed for exploration of Earth class planets that could be colonized, providing that they were not already inhabited by another civilization. If they were, relations would be established. If they weren't, emigration corridors would be set up after an experimental colony had proven the viability of self support.

"And I'll bet you've never found intelligent life, have you?"

She shook her head.? Of course, not. The very way the universe was created points to the improbability of intelligent life anywhere but on Earth. Of course, a lot of people still believe we'll find intelligent alien life one day."

"And maybe we will. I wouldn't hold my breath, though,? I commented dryly.

"I suppose.? Susie didn't sound too convinced, either.? Anyway, after the hyperidors were established to the first two or three planets, emigration could begin on a large scale."

"That follows. I'm not sure what a hyperidor is, but I'd guess it debunks the law of the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. Probably a marked route through a type of subspace that twists those two points so they're closer to each other."

"I'll never get over that, Abigail! How do you do that?? Susie said wonderingly.

"You probably know as well as I do, Susie. As the Lieutenant pointed out, NATech didn't pick me for my good looks, nor for my more obvious military career."

"That military career would fetch you a high rank today with them. But you're right, I do know why NATech picked you; because of your success and ingenuity in the numerous recon missions you and your squad conducted. After we had you pegged, we were able to access many of your mission files.

They were sketchy, and coded, but we could make out some of the details. Your skills with logic and personnel are brilliant. They'd make an excellent study in military tactics."

I blushed a bit.? Somehow, I doubt I'd find too many listeners if I gave the lectures. As for their

'brilliance', I did what I could to obtain the mission objective and keep my men alive. You were talking about the emigration."

"Sorry. Didn't mean to embarrass you. It seems like I'm talking about a different person when discussing your past.

"Once the first hyperidors were safe, around 2270, huge transport ships could move with little effort or cost through them. The population of the world, nearly eight billion, dropped ten percent the first five years."

"Eight hundred million people emigrated?? I whistled.? I can just imagine the impact that had on the world economy."

"Don't whistle, it's very unladylike. Actually, it helped the economy immensely. Think about it. It's a gross over-generalization, but the people most likely to cause unrest or show aggressive tendencies are also the people willing to take the risk of emigration. Further, for those who remained, the stress upon the planet's resources eased by that same ten percent. Perhaps more. Do you mind if I turn down the lights?"

"No, not at all."

She called for the lights to dim. She seemed to almost fade, her smooth, ebony skin blending softly into the smooth, dark rock of the bedroom's wall. She stretched out on her bed, wriggling in under the blankets. I did the same, my sore, sore body thanking me once I lay still.

"But wasn't there support of the colonies?? I asked, picking up the conversation again.? Or did you really treat them as colonies, taking resources while providing finished products?"

"There was some of that in the beginning. In fact, they were not so much colonies as much as fledgling countries. There never was any intention to keep them as extensions of the Earth government.

"There were, however, many corporations who took advantage of the new markets to set up trade. It was pretty one-sided at first, with each new planet having an agrarian society until industrialization could be implemented. Some stayed with their agrarian cultures and set up trade with other planets."

"And Earth was the pivot for the entire trading system?"

"Well, yes, at first. Until hyperidors were marked between the other planets. And even then Earth remained the primary route of trade. Until 2373."

"The Terran/Martian Wars."

"Yes. The wars changed everything. There really is no connection between the settlements on Mars and the colonization of the Class-M planets. Mars couldn't support life on its own; the others were chosen because they could. Mars had to remain a colony, forever dependent upon a planet with a breathable atmosphere. Terra-forming had begun, but it would be eight hundred years before Mars could even approach something close to an actual life-sustaining atmosphere.

"But the Earth government held them too tightly in check, and they rebelled. Using crude plasma drives, they aimed asteroids from the asteroid belt into the path of the Earth, turning them into guided comets.

This allowed them to work with impunity, for they didn't need to wage battle directly. By the time it was discovered what had been done, dozens of these asteroids had been launched. They started to hit the Earth with alarming frequency. Nearly all of them penetrated the atmosphere. Most burned up when entering the atmosphere, releasing massive amounts of heat. A few survived and hit the Earth. Of course, it was nearly impossible to aim the things. They just had a general idea.

"The result was all consuming terror for Earth. Whole cities, destroyed within minutes, without warning.

The majority of deaths happened then, over 400 million. Even the misses that crashed into the oceans caused massive tidal waves and temporarily raised ocean temperatures and destroyed the currents. And the final injury were the primitive plasma drives themselves. There was no effort to reinforce the casings, so many times the plasma exploded on impact, irradiating the area and electrifying the air, burning huge holes in the ozone."

I shivered from the descriptions. Such total, indiscriminate war. I tried to draw up a defense plan for the scenario,

SCENARIO 1947588375 INDICATES THAT A FULL ORBITAL ATTACK ON THE SURFACE OF THE PLANET WILL RENDER THE PRIMARY MARTIAN CITY OF VERMILION 97% INEFFECTIVE IN ALL EIGHT KEY MILITARY AREAS, BUT ALLOW FOR A SURVIVAL RATE OF 38.86%, WHICH INDICATES THAT ASTEROID BOMBARDMENT OF EARTH CAN CONTINUE. SCENARIO 1947588376 INDICATES THAT A FULL ORBITAL ATTACK ON THE SURFACE OF THE PLANET, FOLLOWED BY A GROUND FORCE ATTACK OF 5,000 SHOCK TROOPS WILL RENDER THE PRIMARY MARTIAN CITY OF VERMILION 98.2% INEFFECTIVE IN ALL EIGHT KEY MILITARY AREAS, BUT ALLOW FOR A CITIZENRY SURVIVAL RATE OF 34.92% WHICH INDICATES THAT ASTEROID BOMBARDMENT OF EARTH CAN CONTINUE. SCENARIO 1947588377 INDICATES THAT A FULL OR

but was either too tired to come up with one, or one didn't exist. In a situation like that, even a plan that was ninety-five percent effective would still be a failure. Susie continued.