HIDDEN
- Synopsis
Date 3569.7
Place Majaxan, Asphorian Nebula, 7.2986 Light
Years from Earth
The growing need for
energy supplies means that prospectors have to go further and further to find
them. When they do, they document and categorise the planet, grading it from 0
- completely barren and needing maximum life support, to 10 - earth-like
breathable air and temperature, life supportive. A letter, from A - No
hostility, to D - extreme likelihood of life loss, is added to the number.
Majaxan is classified 2-A, barren, but no life threats. The planet is
covered with a purplish crystalline dust, like tiny marbles, which reflect the
light from the huge star Limenzo at the centre of its solar system, making it
appear to glow. Apart from the interstellar prospector Xymergi Dyzcom, nobody
has set foot on the planet before. It is 50 minutes by jump-drive from Earth,
around seven and a quarter light years away. Nobody is aware of the inhabitants
of the planet, living deep under the crystalline surface. On Earth, in desert
regions, many have been intrigued to watch the Distoleon Tetragrammicus larva
or 'Ant Lion' at work. This tiny predator makes a conical 'pit', at the bottom
of which it sits, waiting. The ant falls in, struggles to climb the sandy slope
and suddenly, the huge jaws of the predator strike and the ant disappears forever.
The planet's inhabitants are gargantuan cousins of Distoleon Tetragrammicus, a
hundred times bigger. Not knowing this, Drazric, the Mintaren commander of the
Zorg Class mining freighter ‘Explorer VIII’, and his 23 crew, lands on the
planet. Before he and his ship are destroyed, he flees as sole survivor.
Bob Curby 2012©
Writing commenced March 2012 - completion target December 2013
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