Read an Excerpt
The Star Series
Book One of Seven
By VINCENT HAVELUND
iUniverse, Inc.
Copyright © 2012 vincent havelund
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4697-4597-8
Chapter One
New beginnings
It was the beginning of the new calendar in the year 1AD and in a small village in China a young girl named Sun Li was coming to maturity. She was fourteen YOA and appeared to be a girl who would be attractive in a few years time. She was the youngest of ten siblings and her parents were very proud of her; not only was she starting to show her physical looks, but she was by nature just as pleasing. Li for so she was called, was a dreamer and one night she had a dream she would never forget, during her long life of 'two hundred and eighty five years', lived mostly on a distant planet. She would always remember that dream which proved to be so accurate in every part of her future life.
When she was eighteen YOA she was destined to meet the 'love of her life', theirs would be a great life together working for the State and the people, and in her final years would rise to be a 'judge on her adopted countries Supreme Court'
In one of her dreams Li had gone fishing with three of her brothers and father, but her job was as the spotter. She was to swim around the area and signal wherever she could find a shoal of fish, a job she really loved doing; because she was such a good swimmer. The men had two boats, and the fish that day was very abundant, it wasn't long before by working the nets together both boats were fully loaded, and they could fish for no more. It wasn't long after they reached shore that most of the fish had been sold, to people who had been lining the river bank, and watching them hauling in fish. The men were happy because they had made a good profit for their days work, but they kept some of the fish to take back to their village to be shared with everyone.
They were on their way home when they met an old man who owned a small herd of pigs, and they were able to barter two pigs in return for some of the fish they still had left.
In the dream they were continuing their journey home when Li suddenly found herself floating off in the air, hard as she struggled to land she couldn't, and so she floated off never again was she to see her family, when she finally returned many years later they had all passed away.
When she awoke the next morning she was very distressed, but she told no one else about her dream she kept it to herself; and tried to figure out what it all meant if anything. Finally she went to her old Grandmother who was bent with age, and asked her what her dream meant. The wise old woman who was well known in the village for her wisdom fondled Li's head, and then as if in a dream began to speak, gradually the full meaning became evident, but Li was incredulous of the message her Granny gave her and doubted it was true.
The fish she had helped her family to catch and sell; meant Li would in the future feed and sustain many people, and she would live to a great age, not in China, but in some far off new home where life would be very different. The pigs meant a family of her own, but there would be only two, and they would grow up healthy and happy just as Li and her husband would be, and the entire family would travel far and wide throughout the universe. Sadly when Li finally left her home it would be under difficult circumstances, and she would never return while any of her immediate family were still alive.
The old lady finished what she had been saying and then seemed to come out of the trance she had gone into. When Li asked her what she had meant she had no memory of anything she had said, it was because of this she told Li that what she had heard was true. Everything would happen, and nothing could change what had been forecasted for Li's future life, because the 'Gods had spoken'.
Everything the old women had prophesied that day came true over Li's lifetime spent mainly living on a far away planet, and Li would often in her travels over vast distances remember with a lot of love her old Granny, who had that day predicted her life so clearly and accurately.
This is a fictional story of ten planets occupied by different types of beings living in different solar systems to Earth; they are all dominated by one planet that is far more advanced than the others. This leading planet named Orbsey has defeated the tyranny of distance in space travel, they are able to enter the fourth dimension and even with their huge space ships move immediately from one galaxy to another. There are many ways in which Orbsey is way ahead of all of the other planets; especially in technology and medical services.
Many years in the future when the main people in this story are due to retire they sat back to talk for a little about their careers, "It's been too long and now we are too tired for any more pleasure in life. There has never been the time to even spend with our children, we could go on for many years of living and the doctors could keep us alive, but I prefer to die with dignity now?" the husband said.
"Yes I too am very tired and just want to pass on, it's been a good exciting life, but the govt; kept us working for too long, now there is no pleasure left. I am 285, and you are 300 YOA; we are both so frail we can do nothing! As you say it's better to die with dignity than tarry any longer, let us go to bed and die peacefully in our sleep?" his wife said with a sweet smile at her dearly loved husband for so many years.
The next morning their daughter Lisa and son Kauri found them, they both had smiles on their faces; they had died together in dignity happy at last. The smiles reflected their many memories together, through a long and turbulent but happy life.
The biggest development on Orbsey is the age for retirement which is 260 YOA and, the average age lived is three hundred years, but it is the highly advanced medical technology that keeps people alive, and able to work that long. Many would prefer to die, but that's not allowed the doctors can and do keep everyone alive, by govt; decree.
Meantime the state has had the people working to their maximum capability, until they are allowed because of their age to retire; they may not by law retire earlier, and they cannot refuse the medical treatment that ensures they are fit for work at all stages of their five different work periods.
Earth was the first planet found, but is considered too far behind the others in every way to qualify as a member of the Federation of Planets; when it is formed rather Earth is given the status of being a protectorate of the leading planet Orbsey, and has its own special place within the group. The integration of the peoples of Earth and Orbsey are good, and any problems are overcome over the years.
We need to discern the similarities between the reality of the highly advanced planets, and the actuality of life on Earth in the 20th century; by comparing the differences which are clear. Earth at the time of Christ's birth was gradually emerging as an agricultural economy, owned and controlled in the main by the wealthy few, and the manual work all done by the peasant classes. The planets discovered by Orbsey are at different stages of development, meaning the same as Orbsey had once been but all were ahead of Earth. In other words there were only two levels of economic reality, the very wealthy and the very poor.
In the modern age on Earth during the 20th century, the people are in bondage to debt in many guises, but it's still a class struggle that goes on daily. The bankers represent the wealthy classes, and control the monetary flows by lending significantly to the middle class. The govts; in theory look after everyone, but depending on the political financial persuasion one can see different ideas, being pursued.
The series is based on the discovery of the new Planets by Orbseyn Scientists, and the interaction between the new comers, and the Orbseyn population. The beings who occupy the various planets are herein called 'people from which Orbsey is setting up small colonies' within their own territory.
This account is fast moving often funny, sometimes tragic, and other times just a difference between the citizens of ten different planets plus Earth. Naturally all have different ways, but the ones this story is about are the colonies set up on Orbsey for observation purposes, and the work that had to be done to create strong integration. When the colonies are complete they are a very diverse lot, all with different ideas and ideals, planet Earth is the most backward of them all, but in many ways the most aggressive. The 'main characters' is an Earthling and her Orbseyn husband, and the Earth colonies are favored for this and for other reasons, the main one being that 'Earth was the first planet discovered'.
Chapter Two
Orbsey a Star in the heavens
The discovery of planet Earth was announced by the leading scientist to the Presidium of their planet Orbsey and it was received with caution, of what interest is such a backward planet to us they had asked?
Before the discovery was released to the general public, the scientists who had discovered the new planet, were told to appear before a board of enquiry to explain what they were doing and why? The politicians conducting the enquiry were questioning the scientists by cyber space; and the scientists were in the studio of a media network, answering the questions live.
"What is the reason for this discovery; is it of any benefit to our planet?" The chairman asked.
"The want is for knowledge of the universe and to know better what is out there beside's ourselves. The need is to look forward to our own planets security, in the future there will be many planets discovered, and some will be hostiles. We have the need to know so we can protect ourselves".
"How is the knowing all about other planets going to protect us please explain what you mean in some detail, so we politicians can understand?"
"We have one very advanced planet here, but we are self centered, one day another planet will come along and want to occupy us, and we won't know how to resist. We need to get to know other planets with the view of cooperation together in some way for security purposes, and in this if we are successful we will be able to form a group working together with common goals."
"How long do you anticipate this entire program will take to put in place? And how many trained people will we need to run the program you are proposing?"
"It will take at least two hundred years maybe more, but it will be a well worthwhile investment in our planets future, and the staff will be in the thousands".
"Very well we will let you know in a week our decision thank you gentlemen, until then do nothing more please."
A week later the scientists received full support for their work, and told they could carry on, and disclose what they were doing so the entire planets population could understand. The hope was the people would be in full support of the program as outlined, by the scientists.
There had been an excited rush of applicants from all over Orbsey, of many citizens who wanted to travel to the new planet that had been found. Citizens from every country on the planet, wanted to be among the first two thousand who were to be selected to be the planets first 'interplanetary explorers'. Over one million enquiries had been received within the first week; of the announced intention to send out a space fleet with up to two thousand citizens aboard, who were to explore, and try to set up a colony on the new found planet Earth.
Every country on the planet Orbsey had set up offices, and staff to receive applications, and they had been quickly swamped with citizens; who wanted to be among the first to be going as pioneer's to a new world.
Over 2,000 years previously at about the time of the birth of Christ in a distant galaxy, on a planet "Orbsey" which was very much bigger than Earth, but whose people were in many respects similar. The scientists had started sending out probes, searching for a planet in a solar system that was capable of maintaining life similar to their own.
Their own planet was peaceful all wars had been stopped or forcefully cancelled out many years ago, but their ambitions had extended far, and now they wanted to know, are there others out there like us? If there are can we communicate with any of them?
Many unmanned probes had been sent out, but none had been successful, then on behalf of a radio based quest, a famous scientist reported a solar system had been found; from which definite signs of life had been heard. The site from where the 'radio signals' were sent were not too far distant in an adjacent galaxy, and research was being pursued to get confirmation of its existence, and whether the radio signals had been deliberately sent; by intelligent beings capable of understanding they were sending the messages. The big question was where they also trying to find any sign of intelligent life, because if they were there must be an advanced intelligence involved.
From the time of Earth's discovery many years had gone by during which more probes were sent out, and had reported back the information the scientists wanted, but now it was time to decide what they wanted to do about colonizing this new planet. It had been found that the planet was in many respects a complete replica of the Planet Orbsey except there was only one sun and one moon. On the contrary Orbsey moved in a planetary system that had three suns? Orbsey itself had several moons.
The Orbseyn population had been controlled for many years, and peace had also been normal for a long time. The people had millennia before settled all differences, and the countries of planet Orbsey lived in harmony, controlled by one big central govt; and with six different almost equal (numerically) groups all represented within the central Govt. There had been a serious overpopulation on Orbsey until they had begun to increase the natural life span of its peoples, and then control the rate of birth, the results had been spectacular, and now with the life span greatly expanded there was no aging or population problems
All aggressive wars between the various Orbseyn countries had ceased thousands of years ago, when a method had been found that nullified all weapons of war, even hand guns had been abolished. Only pistols for sporting purposes were still allowed, but they were not allowed to fire bullets, that type of weapon was confined to none destructive laser beams (Stun Guns). Laws had been legislated and enforced whereby no weapons of any level of destruction could be used for any purpose, and the police used stun guns only against known criminals.
The people are much the same in appearance as the people from Earth, but the method of communication had many centuries before changed to thought only, the only thing they had to do was think of someone and they were in instant touch. All food was ingested by simply thinking of what they wanted to eat, and the food intake was immediate through the thought process, as a result over many centuries they had gradually lost their mouths and were now quite comfortable without them, they really had no use for them except perhaps to make a noise at sporting events, but they did that well enough without mouths.
Any serious illnesses could be corrected by the simple process of replacement of the parts that were sick or weak; their heads were a little bigger than Earthlings, but they had no ears they weren't needed so again had been lost over the centuries. All other parts were still the same as earthlings, legs, arms, hands, torso etc.
It had never been general knowledge what the scientific Community had been trying to achieve, because they had wanted to keep the discovery secret, until they could be certain about what they had found. At the early stage the only contact had been by radio, but now more information had been confirmed, by way of a huge new telescope system in orbit over Orbsey, all of their scientific hopes had been confirmed and they were jubilant. When the news finally broke there was great excitement, they had even found an area on this Earth that was only lightly inhabited, within a huge area of sea and comprising several Islands, one that was very large and another with two Islands but quite small, and lots of smaller islands on the outer peripheral.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from The Star Series by VINCENT HAVELUND Copyright © 2012 by vincent havelund. Excerpted by permission of iUniverse, Inc.. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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