Speeks: Book 2 of the Eeks Trilogy

By John Standingford

Leonora Mendoza, Captain of the Terra Nova I, awakes in her hiberpod in orbit around the planet Goldilox. The Space Eeks ('Speeks') have already built an enclosed city and set up an elaborate life-support system. There's even a shopping mall.
Leonora and Dr Tan Wangzi go down to the surface, check the accommodation and meet the Speeks who constitute the Goldilox Management Board.
The Speeks' arrangements seem perfect and the migrants begin transferring from spaceship to planet. They soon find that the hard part of the mission is just beginning - setting up a self-contained human community with diverse ethnicity and a 4:1 sex ratio. But Hepplewhite, the urbane leader of the Speeks, is always on hand to help. He even has a solution for the sex imbalance.
Thanks to Dominique Dupré's passion for field exploration, the colonists discover that they are not the only sentient beings on Goldilox. That proves to be a game-changer.

• Language: English
• Publisher: John Standingford
• Release date: Nov 10, 2015
• ISBN: 9781311863591

John Standingford

John was born in London, grew up on Merseyside and now lives in Adelaide, Australia. This is his wife Mary's home town, but they met and married in Bangladesh in the year of the first moon-landing. They now have two grown-up sons and two grandsons.John's life has been spent mainly as an itinerant economist, working in most countries in the Asia-Pacific region and most of the former Soviet republics.Now he is fulfilling a lifelong ambition to be a creative writer. His first work was The Eeks Trilogy, which uses speculative fiction to explore questions about Humanity's essential nature and likely future. All three books are now available in a single volume entitles Goldiloxians. His next book was HM4MEN - a light-hearted manual on household management for men.He has completed a fourth novel called Bobby Shafter, set in 1950s Britain, which was published conventionally by Elephant House Press and is now available (for a sixth of the price) as an e-book. John's latest book is Farley's Bend, the sequel to Bobby Shafter, set three years later.

Book preview

Speeks

John Standingford

Book 2 of the Eeks Trilogy

Published by John Standingford at Smashwords

Copyright 2015 John Standingford

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Contents

Chapter 01    Awakening

Chapter 02    Arrival

Chapter 03    Testing the Beds

Chapter 04    The Big Meeting

Chapter 05    The Transfer

Chapter 06    Settling In

Chapter 07    News from Earth

Chapter 08    Rules and Relationships

Chapter 09    Fieldwork

Chapter 10    Risk Management

Chapter 11    It's All About Sex

Chapter 12    A Big Surprise

Chapter 13    Mundane Matters

Chapter 14    Competition

Chapter 15    Expeditions

Chapter 16    Announcements

Chapter 17    What Women Want

Chapter 18    Escape

Chapter 19    Concentration of Minds

Chapter 20    Hacked!

Endnotes

Abbreviations and Glossary

Acknowledgements

About the Author

Other Books by John Standingford

This story is the sequel to 'Eeks'. It starts on board the spaceship Terra Nova 1 towards the end of the twenty-first century.

Chapter 01    Awakening

Leonora Mendez woke slowly. For a time she floated in the hazy space between sleep and wakefulness, not sure if what she saw around her was real or dreamed. She was looking up at a grey ceiling patterned by ducts and grills. The concealed lighting was dim but gradually getting brighter, almost imperceptibly.

Her first conscious thought was that she was re-living a scene in a science fiction movie. She struggled to sit up, then noticed that the hiberpod was gently tilting, raising her head. She looked left and right. The other pods were still closed. She remembered: as Captain she was to be woken first.

Leonora lifted her left arm experimentally. At first she thought it was being restrained. She moved her head and eyes to look, and realized that the only restraint was her own weakness. She was also reminded that she had several tubes and sensors attached to her body. They would have to be removed before she tried to leave the pod.

During training they had been warned about the effects of such a long hibernation on their muscles and bones. Their muscles would receive regular electrical stimulation and intravenous fluids would deliver calcium as well as other nutrients. The ship would rotate constantly to replicate the effects of gravity. Even so, it would take at least three months of a carefully designed exercise routine to bring them back to their normal physical condition.

She had asked, What about our mental condition? The trainers admitted that they had no idea. Our modelling suggests normal mental functioning almost as soon as you wake up. But we've never had anyone in hibernation mode for twenty years before. The truth is, we don't know. But the OBC – the onboard computer – will take care of everything until you land and then you'll be with the Speeks. The unspoken message was, Don't worry if you arrive with the mental capacity of a carrot: your primary role is reproduction and the Speeks will know how to grow babies from you.

There had been much debate about what to call the robots that were sent out to find and occupy planets for human colonisation. While the debate was going on the popular press started calling them 'Space Eeks' which was shortened to 'Speeks'. The name stuck.

Someone else asked whether their fertility would be affected by such a long hibernation. They got a similar answer: Again, we don't really know. We don't think so but as a back-up you'll be taking frozen eggs and sperm with you. However, we'd prefer natural reproduction as far as possible.

Another questioner said, Why a preference for natural reproduction? That's pretty hit-and-miss, isn't it?

Yes, but it's all part of creating a normal society. The research shows that in a small population things work best with internally cohesive but interdependent family units within a formal social structure. That's how the Polynesians colonized most of the Pacific Ocean without killing each other to the point of extinction. The process of sexual intimacy, conception, birth, child-rearing – it seems to be an important factor for cohesion in family units.

Leonora interjected: Some people might say we've known that for a long time, without any research. It's not rocket science!

Well yes, I'd have to agree with you. But this is a very new, very different kind of enterprise. We can't just assume that everything'll work the same way it does on Earth. A lot of smart people went back to basics and asked some questions that might seem unnecessary. They looked at a lot of alternatives.

And what about the 'formal social structure'?

That's why we selected you people. You've all been rated very high for self-discipline, acceptance of authority and preference for structured, rules-based environments. And the special skills that you collectively possess include governance, jurisprudence, institution-building and management.

Let's get back to sex, said one of the men, drawing laughter. Are we taking our own frozen eggs and sperm?

Yes, but other people's too. The idea is to introduce other genetic material into subsequent generations to get a wider gene pool and prevent inbreeding. Ideally we want to have a population on Goldilox that's representative of the population here on Earth. Strength in diversity.

There had been a worldwide competition to find a name for whichever planet the Speeks found and prepared for human occupation – once it had been decided not to auction the naming rights. Thousands of entries were received but 'Goldilocks' was the hands-down winner. For many years the metaphor of Goldilocks and the three bears' porridge had been applied to planets that were not too hot and not too cold to have liquid water and be fit for human occupation. The children's story originated in Britain in the early nineteenth century, but it was so widely known that it was considered part of the global cultural heritage.

Substitution of 'x' for 'cks' was a last-minute idea that nobody opposed. As the UN Secretary-General remarked when he put it to the General Assembly, At least we'll know which Goldilocks we mean. The Russian Delegate drew laughter by suggesting the search should start in the constellation of Ursa Major.

* * *

Leonora stopped trying to lift her arm and instead began flexing her muscles. She remembered the relaxation exercises that she used to do when she had trouble sleeping. She did them in reverse. Starting with her head, shoulders and arms, she consciously tightened and loosened each muscle group ten times. She did this progressively, finishing with her ankles and toes. The act of identifying and then activating individual muscles gave her a sense of wholeness. It was as though her brain was remembering where everything was and how to turn her intentions into movement. She tried to lift her arm again and it responded. Slowly she flexed and rotated it. She moved each finger, then made a fist.

She wondered if she would be able to speak normally. Nobody else was awake yet but the OBC should be able to hear her. Obi, she said, I need help to get out of the pod. She was relieved that the words came out naturally. The OBC was programmed to recognize his nickname Obi or, rather more formally, Obi-1. This was a conscious nod to the twentieth century Star Wars films.

The response was immediate and startled her. It took the form of a question delivered from somewhere in the ceiling: Would you like me to slow the rate of rotation to reduce the artificial gravity, Captain?

Er, yes. Yes please. Slow it by 20%.

That would reduce the gravitational effect by 36%.

That's about right. We have to have some gravity if we're to move about normally and get our strength back. Now that she had her voice again she had an urge to talk. Where are we? Have there been any problems?

No problems, Captain. We passed through zones of high-level radiation but they caused no harm to the ship or the migrants. The ship is now in stable orbit around Goldilox as planned.

The human occupants of spaceship Terra Nova 1 were referred to as 'migrants'. Several other words were mooted but discarded. 'Colonists' had bad overtones, as did 'Travellers'. 'Passengers' sounded too passive.

That's wonderful, Obi. How are the others? When will they wake up?

The vital signs of fifty-six other migrants are normal, Captain. They will be woken up at one-minute intervals, starting twenty minutes from now.

There are sixty of us on board. What about the other three?

They did not survive the journey, Captain.

Obi delivered the information without emotion of course, but Leonora felt a sudden coldness inside her. She let a few seconds pass before asking, Who didn't survive?

Obi gave their names and serial numbers. There were two females and one male. Leonora felt conflicting emotions. She was sad that anyone had died but relieved that there were only three: she had been told to expect a mortality rate of 10%. Three other migrants had been selected as possible replacements for Leonora herself, in case she did not survive the journey.

She was also relieved that the dead male was not her designated sexual partner. Twelve male migrants began the journey, each one matched genetically and temperamentally with four females. A lot of effort had gone into the matching process and Leonora would not have wanted the added anxiety of joining another group.

There had been objections to sending only heterosexual migrants but the need to establish a viable breeding population was paramount. In any case, sexual diversity would occur in each successive generation. The ratio of 4:1 was arbitrary but pleased the Muslim community. As someone remarked, We've had 1,500 years to get it right!

Leonora also felt a sense of guilt that the three deaths had occurred under her command. She knew this was absurd, but she had been selected for the captaincy partly because of her strong sense of duty. With that came a tendency to feel responsible for everything.

* * *

The process of waking the other migrants went smoothly but slowly. The reduced artificial gravity made movement a little easier, but everyone was happy to use the harnesses that dropped from the ceiling and allowed them to move with some support. Obi activated all six Edoms that had been included in the Terra Nova's inventory. They helped the waking migrants to extricate themselves from the pods, attach the harnesses, wash and put on fresh clothes. Everyone agreed that the best part was cleaning their teeth.

How long's it been? asked Alec Schmidt, an American mental hygienist and Leonora's designated sexual partner – or 'designated driver' as he preferred to say.

Obi, how long have we been travelling?

18.74 earth years, Captain.

And how much have we aged, Obi? added Alec.

You have aged by 13.61 earth years.

Then I'm still under 40!

Just, put in Leonora after some quick mental arithmetic.

And you don't look a day over 50, said Dominique Dupré, in spite of your fast living and 13 years of designer stubble! Dominique was a geologist with several doctorates and a passion for fieldwork.

They were 11 light-years from the solar system, their IQs were at the very top end of the bell curve and they had been selected from 10,000 applicants for the most ambitious mission ever undertaken by the human race. But communication between human males still took the form of humorous insults.

The women on the other hand were talking quietly but excitedly among themselves, once the Edoms had helped them to freshen up. A man might wonder what they found to talk about after nearly 19 years of hibernation.

When all the pods were open, except for the three whose occupants had not lived to see their new home, Obi made an announcement: Please move to the lounge where a meal will be served soon by the Edoms. Since this will be your first solid food for a long time it will be a small meal, but highly nutritious.

Until then nobody had felt particularly hungry, but the mention of 'solid food' was an immediate appetite-booster and there was spontaneous cheering. Obi went on: After the meal you will be required to take part in the first exercise session.

Obi's most exciting announcement came last: As you know, we are in Goldilox orbit. The ship has no windows but in the lounge you will be able to see real-time images of the planet as we pass over it. A narrow door whirred open and the migrants filed through it, jostling like eager children.

Chapter 02    Arrival

After three days in orbit the migrants had acclimatized surprisingly well. The ship's rate of rotation had been increased to produce artificial gravity that matched that on the surface of Goldilox, which was about 80% of Earth's. Frequent short exercise sessions and protein-rich meals had improved their general physique. They still needed regular sleep, even though they had been in hibernation for 18.74 years. They slept in shifts, just as on a sea-going ship on Earth, and initially it was drug-assisted.

Leonora made sure of a mix of social and professional activities. Everyone on board was a specialist and a series of meetings was arranged to discuss the practicalities of setting up the colony. Some of these meetings were general, involving all 57 surviving migrants, others were for smaller groups of people from related disciplines. At one such meeting they discussed their likely reception on Goldilox. Manju Varma, psychologist and anthropologist, gave a presentation that provoked lively discussion.

We can't be sure how the Speeks will regard us, she said. "They've been programmed to create a new home for us, for the human race. They exist only for that purpose and they are hard-wired with the Laws of Robotics, so they cannot harm a human either by action or by inaction. They know our physical requirements and limitations. They have the technical capability to explore for minerals and extract and process them; to grow and improve plants; to manufacture chemicals, including pharmaceuticals; to capture and harness different forms of energy, including dark energy; to undertake major engineering projects. So we can expect a benign environment, comfortable living conditions, excellent medical facilities.

But the Speeks have had long enough to go through a process rather like evolution. Their knowledge database has been added to with what they've learned here and whatever data they've been able to receive from Earth. And all their programs and data will have been migrated between media and between generations.

What do you mean by 'between generations'? asked Grant Yumawarra, biochemist and geneticist.

Well, I'd be very surprised if any of the Speeks that left Earth a human generation ago will be waiting to shake hands with us. They would have made improved versions of themselves, recycling the bits that are still useful, changing the bits that are no longer fit-for-purpose.

They may even have developed new materials that allowed them to build a generation of super-robots, smarter and stronger than the originals, said Tran Kim-Ly, mechanical and electrical engineer. Don't forget, their data from Earth are only 11 years out-of-date and we've been asleep for 19 years. And they've probably found ways to overcome the limitations of their original humanoid configuration.

"Like a third hand for