Return to Paradise

By Philip R Benge

Four friends, citizens of the planet Paradise, returning from a holiday on a water planet are accidentally bathed in a strange radiation that gives them super powers, unfortunately, they soon find that these powers turn the people of the planet against them. The ruling council even arrest them in the hope of learning how and where the powers were acquired. However, when an alien race invades their planet and enslave the citizens, the four friends are seen as the planet’s only hope of the citizens regaining their freedom. However, a section of the citizens would prefer them to refrain from fighting for freedom, seeing the aliens as victims.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Philip R Benge
• Release date: Aug 16, 2021
• ISBN: 9781005294281

Philip R Benge

Like most of the world, I had to work hard to pay my mortgage and all the other bills, which meant that I only had the time and the energy to write some short stories. I finally found the time and the energy to write some full length Science Fiction stories.

Book preview

Return to Paradise

A Story By

Philip R Benge

Smashwords Edition

***************

Published by

Philip R Benge on Smashwords

Return to Paradise

Copyright Philip R Benge 2021

Cover Art courtesy of NASA camera on the Deep Space Climate Observatory satellite

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This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author`s imagination and used fictitiously.

Return to Paradise

Contents

Prologue

Chapter One: Cursed

Chapter Two: Flight

Chapter Three: Invasion

Chapter Four: The Fight Back

Chapter Five: The Final Battle for Freedom

Other Books by the Author

Prologue

Before the Stardrive was invented, manned spaceships did not venture outside of the Sol solar system. Then a group, numbering 2000 people and consisting of a mixture of scientists, farmers and craftsmen, dared to change

this. They belonged to the Religion of the One God and they wanted escape from what they saw as the repressive government of the Earth. Using the newly refined cryogenics of the middle part of the 22nd century, and using a nuclear-powered Ion-drive propulsion system, their starship travelled a distance of 300 light-years, the first manned inter-stellar voyage ever made by Mankind, to another planetary system. Here they built a civilisation on a planet that they named Paradise, for they were sure that the planet resembled the Garden of Eden. One of Einstein’s laws was relevant here, more years had passed on Earth than on the Ion-drive starship, this was to give some hope to the colonists in the future.

This newly created civilisation was freer than that of Earth and with the invention of the Stardrive back on Earth, many more people migrated from Earth to this new Eden, bringing with them the advanced technology of Earth. Unfortunately, there were two large problems, the military technology of Paradise did not improve and with all the new colonists, the government on Paradise began to mirror the one that the colonists had left behind on Earth.

Chapter One

Cursed

Two married couples were aboard the Marine Institute of Paradise research vessel Beagle, they were returning to their home world of Paradise. One of the couples had been taking a break from their jobs at the Astrobiology Institute and the other couple worked at the University of Eden. The first couple, Mark and Jennean Peterson, were scientists at the institute and they had come to the water world of Aquascutum to carry out some light-hearted research, swim and generally enjoy themselves on the deserted white atolls amid a blue ocean. They were new comers to the planet Paradise, having arrived from Earth just two years previously. They had followed their parents as well as Mark’s brother and his wife, to Paradise after hearing how lovely it was. Unfortunately, their family had not realised that like the biblical Eden, Paradise also had a snake, the authorities of Paradise. It made itself known soon after Mark and Jennean’s arrival at Paradise with new rules and regulations. Stricter security laws had been brought in covertly and which were about to be enforced.

The other couple were their friends, Jack Melrose, a research engineer who worked at the University of Eden, and his wife Rhonda, who was a computer geek and who also worked at the university. They had been born on Paradise and so were citizens of the planet, rather than Earth. One member of the crew, Johny Mason, who came to Paradise from Earth with Mark and Jennean, spent this holiday at home, for his brother, who also lived on the planet, was ill and he did not want to leave him until he began to show signs of recovering.

Luckily, for them, their ship had a Stardrive, the journey had taken them just seven days to reach the Aquascutum planetary system. There were seven planets in orbit around its sun and one of the planets was covered almost entirely with water, beneath which life was abundant. It did have a number of coral atolls and reefs, some active volcanic islands with one having a large area covered in hot springs, there were also some inactive volcanic islands which were being colonised by the first signs of land-based vegetation.

The system was 60 light-years from their home system and as they left Aquascutum to return home, they were forced off course by a massive space storm that erupted without warning and which forced them to take a more indirect course back to their home world. Their new course took them past a newish white star where its retinue of planets was still forming. They would not have passed anywhere near to the star, except for the storm forcing them towards it and when they neared the star, they found that it was giving out some peculiar readings. Although this was well outside their own field of research, Mark and Jennean had decided to stop to take a mass of readings which they intended to look at on the way home. After hours looking at the white star, Mark Peterson, who was the pilot of the Beagle and owner of the institute, had become tired and so he switched the view on the forward viewscreen to take in the rest of the nearby galaxy and having done so something puzzled him, there was something wrong with the picture.

Jenny, the picture on the viewscreen is very clear today, there is normally a faint twinkling of the stars? He then added. Oh! Could you check the air conditioning Darling, it is a little hot in here?

His wife Jennean was looking at the scanner, still absorbed with the white star, however, she sighed and came to sit next to her husband, he was obviously wrong in what he had just said, so she asked him.

What are you on about Mark, there is always a slight twinkling effect, it is caused by the....

It was then that Jennean looked up at the viewscreen and what she saw had stopped her from finishing her sentence. Instead, she went to the ship`s main computer and looked at the program dealing with the magnetic defence shield, the shield deflected all radiation and micro-meteorites away from the outer hull of their ship and caused the twinkling. What she saw there caused a pain in her stomach, it was fear biting deep inside of her.

Mark, the defence shield has been turned off, we have been bathed in hard radiation for god knows how long. Jennean cried out fearfully. No wonder it is hot in here, the temperature on the outside of the hull is close to roasting.

Although deeply afraid she was not inactive, her fingers were busy re-activating the defence shield. In the pilot`s chair, Mark was busy on his own computer terminal; he was looking at the program that governed the activation of the ship`s important programs. Swearing softly, he turned to Jennean, who had now been joined by the other couple, they had arrived after hearing some of what had been said on the bridge.

That software upgrade that the authorities installed just before we left on our trip is the problem, it has a large bug in it that allows it to de-activate programs after a certain run time, which is what it did. I have now told the computer to return to the day before the upgrade, that will prevent it from happening again. Mark cried out angrily. I knew that I should have had Rhonda check the update before we activated it.

Unfortunately, Mark, the update arrived just before we were due to leave on our holiday and we all were badly in need of a break. In any case, the update was written by Carter Software, it should not have been necessary to check it before activating it. Rhonda explained to Mark.

It’s done Rhonda, Mark, we had all better have our health checked by the ship`s medical computer, we need to know if we have been affected and if so, how badly. Jack Melrose said to them.

Jack looked anxiously across at his wife, Rhonda, fear was biting away at his vitals too, fear that his wife might have been harmed by the faulty software.

Two hours later, and after the medical computer had given them the all clear, they went to their quarters and rested, exhausted by the nearly fatal ordeal and a little perplexed as to how they had all got off so lightly. It appeared that they all had a touch of sunburn, but nothing more serious, they were now applying a soothing lotion to their affected parts and thanking God that they had been spared anything worse. It was only later that they found out that their stopover at the curious white star had given them super powers. As for now, they had ordered the ship’s computer to set a course for home, keeping clear of the storm and when it had confirmed that it had done so, Mark took them in to hyperspace, they were on their way home.

They first noticed their powers when Jennean was sitting in the galley drinking a hot cup of coffee, with her was Rhonda Melrose.

Rhonda, I am sick to death of space food, it just does not have the same taste as my home cooked meals. What I would really like is my special beef goulash, seasoned with paprika and with lots of fresh vegetables to boot.

One micro second later and a plate of goulash appeared in front of them, steam rising up from the meal and looking absolutely delicious.

With a startled look on her face, Rhonda exclaimed loudly.

Jenny, how did you do that?

However, Jennean did not see the plate of goulash, instead Mark Peterson who had just walked in to the galley and heard only the latter part of the conversation asked lightly, suspecting Jennean of playing a joke on Rhonda.

Do what, what you been up to now Jenny?

Rhonda hastily got up and backed away from the table, bumping in to Mark as she retreated from the apparition which sat there steaming on the table. Rhonda turned to Mark and explained.

Jenny just said that she was sick of space food and fancied a goulash, and whoosh, there it was.

Just then Jack Melrose, entered unnoticed by the others, the thought about goulash had now been reinforced in Jennean’s mind and the two men now saw the goulash. He looked down at the plate of food and said to the others.

"No, it