Diversiform

By Jeff Young

Diversiform contains the Writers of the Future Award winning story "Written in Light" and the prequel "No Visitors Beyond This Point". Humanity's future in a galaxy full of other species is limited by their ability to gain new worlds. The galactic community decides the allocation of worlds with Diversiform Disputes where contesting species prove which can create the most effective biosphere. In "Written in Light" a young girl is lost in the wilds of a Disputed world and found by one of the biosphere's engineers. The alien must decide if the human is telling her the truth about her accidental presence or if she is there to sabotage the Dispute. When the girl becomes ill the engineer must now decide what is more important- finishing her work or saving a life. The unlikely allies join together to return the girl to her parents and unravel the mystery surrounding her strange illness. In "No Visitors Beyond This Point" a tragic accident causes the loss of fifteen alien lives and the subsequent investigation may reveal more about humanity's past than certain people will allow. What looks simple on the surface becomes rapidly complex as the local Governance official works to uncover the truth behind the incident.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jeff Young
• Release date: May 8, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301839506

Jeff Young

Jeff Young is the managing editor of Ohio Valley ReSource, a regional journalism collaborative reporting on economic and social change in Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia. The ReSource includes seven public media outlets across the three states, and aims to strengthen news coverage of the area’s most important issues. Jeff previously worked for West Virginia Public Broadcasting and was a Washington correspondent for the Public Radio International program “Living on Earth.” Jeff grew up near Huntington, West Virginia, and studied journalism and biology at Marshall University and the University of Charleston. His reporting has been recognized with numerous awards, and he was named a 2012 Nieman Journalism Fellow at Harvard University. He lives in Louisville with his wife, Helen, and their daughters, Hazel and Louisa. 

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Diversiform

Jeff Young

Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2013 Jeff Young

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Diversiform

Two Short stories in the Diversiform Universe

Written in Light

For a brief moment, Zoi’ahmets stood as still as the tree the wickurn resembled, watching as the unknown creature stumbled backwards from her. Perhaps it was the fact that Zoi’ahmets was twice its height, her triple conjoined trunks or the orange eye that she swiveled in its direction. Two podia, how could it manage like that? So inefficient in dealing with gravity, unstable surfaces and even the strain over time on such a small surface area, -certainly nothing like Zoi’ahmets’ designs. She had so little time to be certain that everything was prepared for the Diversiform Dispute judging and what in Winter was happening here? The cognition engine finally linked with the translator nailed to her bark. Only then did she grasp that the sounds that had been striking the translator were attempts at communication.

Amazingly the intruder turned its back completely on Zoi’ahmets and began to dig through the grass. That was a very anti-survival trait in an unresolved situation. Perhaps it had lost something. She fed its image into the cognition engine, which identified the creature as human. Trying to imagine what it might be searching for, the wickurn cast about with all of her eyes looking over the thick verdure of the pampas and nearby bushes. There was something black and lumpy with a short set of straps hanging in the top of a shrub nearby. One branch reached for it as another gently spun the human around and faced it towards its property. The human awkwardly trudged through the grass. Zoi’ahmets gently handed it the case. It spared a moment to eye its benefactor thoughtfully and then dropped gracelessly to the ground to open the case. The human quickly extracted a silver device which when clipped behind its ear opened up like a flower. The shiny metallic petals spun and clicked restlessly in the afternoon. Another device fit about the neck and a third nestled in center of its hand. Then Zoi’ahmets finally heard the human begin to speak.

_____ wickurn ______ about 3 meters ______ seems to be looking out for me. ______ see why it’s here. Since I’m as far into the Disputed zone as I am ______ ______ _______ _________. Can’t understand why it hasn’t ___________ with me yet.

Communicated? offered Zoi’ahmets as she pulled herself slowly to the human.

Yeah, actually, stammered the being.

You were not exactly making intelligible sounds until just a moment ago.

And you were pretending to be a tree! No, I’m sorry, you are a tree. You can’t help that. I guess I just never expected you to move.

Why would I require help, if I am in my natural state?

Look, this isn’t going well. You’re one of the workers on this Diversiform Dispute, and I’m obviously keeping you from your job. I apologize for startling you, if that’s what I did. It took a deep breath and continued, I’m Kiona. I’m . . . a student of photography. I rode the ground vehicle over there until it stopped. Then the flight craft that was following us crashed into a tree, I’m so sorry to disturb you. I was only trying to learn more about the Disputed Zone. It bowed slightly in Zoi’ahmets’ direction, focusing two green