Dagril's Legacy

By Alvah Phillips

From the loss of their starship to the First World War to the modern age, these are Hamen children living in an Earth world.

Three Hamen scientists are stranded on Earth. They become a family and survive for 570 years. Because they do not appear to age, they must move to different places. This book can only highlight a few of those places.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Jun 6, 2022
• ISBN: 9781663239976

Alvah Phillips

A.C. Philips lives in Texas loves to travel. and has been to many countries. Most of his first book was set in Florence Italy. Loves to read historical novels, even historical romances, spy novels and aerial warfare. France, Brazil, Argentina, England and Italy are among his favorite countries.

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DAGRIL’S LEGACY

ALVAH PHILLIPS

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DAGRIL’S LEGACY

Copyright © 2022 alvah phillips.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

iUniverse

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

ISBN: 978-1-6632-3996-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6632-3997-6 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2022909148

iUniverse rev. date:  05/13/2022

CONTENTS

Prologue

Chapter 1 On the Hamen Starship

Chapter 2 Explosion

Chapter 3 Going to Florence

Chapter 4 Florence

Chapter 5 The Banker’s Party

Chapter 6 The Dark Cloud

Chapter 7 Buying the Dress Shop

Chapter 8 Trouble at the Stable

Chapter 9 Everin and the Dress Shop

Chapter 10 The New Stable

Chapter 11 Doc

Chapter 12 The Dress Shop Windows

Chapter 13 Riding Back to Florence

Chapter 14 The Dress Shop Girls

Chapter 15 Lucca

Chapter 16 Alerton Looks for a Farm

Chapter 17 Moving Uriel

Chapter 18 The Bank

Chapter 19 The Food

Chapter 20 Setting a Date

Chapter 21 Uriel

Chapter 22 The Dress

Chapter 23 Jewels

Chapter 24 Wedding Day

Chapter 25 Christmas

Chapter 26 The Plague

Chapter 27 The Plague Strikes Home

Chapter 28 1477

Chapter 29 Dagril’s Legacy

Chapter 30 July 28, 1914

Chapter 31 Steam Yacht

Chapter 32 Special Marine Aircraft

Chapter 33 Mingaladon, Burma

Chapter 34 Problem with Henri

Chapter 35 2014

Chapter 36 2017

PROLOGUE

In AD 1347, a starship from a distant world where the people, because of perfected DNA, lived exceptionally long lives was observing Earth for benign scientific purposes. When the starship exploded, two escape pods were launched.

One pod carried one Hamen on board, Dagril. It was overloaded with precious metals and jewels but for noble reasons. The load made the pod overheat, and Dagril perished on the way down. The second pod contained three Hamens, one female and two males. They knew they would be marooned on Earth for a minimum of forty Earth years. A distress signal would take twenty years to reach Hamen, and a rescue mission would take another twenty years to reach them.

They salvaged both pods and protected what they salvaged. They used the valuables they saved to make their fortunes. The three Hamen survivors were Everin, Alerton, and Metrool.

1

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ON THE HAMEN STARSHIP

The B crew were in the dining area, which was decorated to their taste and redecorated automatically. Everin entered the dining area and requested meal 359 from the automated meal creator.

Alerton, technically in command, said, Everin, ever since you programmed that meal, you ask for it half the time.

Everin answered, Strange. It’s a copy of an Earth meal, but I find I enjoy it.

Rondal, a computer telescope tech, said, Everin, how can you possibly eat that? It has a dead animal in it.

Everin replied, You know better than that, Rondal. All our food is created by the computer from basic elements.

Rondal said, The computer gives it the taste and texture of the real thing.

Dagril said, Leave her alone. We are letting those beings kill and eat animals and kill and maim one another, and we do nothing about it. Now a disease is spreading across their world, killing untold thousands.

Metrool, a technician, said, I have shown you the history tapes. Every time we try to help a society advance, things go wrong—sometimes terribly wrong.

Arrista, one of the official historians on board, said, We have interfered before on this very planet.

Dagril said, We have? When?

Well, as most of you know, two small colonies of us settled on this planet forty thousand Earth years ago.

Metrool asked, Were there two or three?

Arrista said, We are not sure.

Everin asked, What happened to them?

Well, you know our home planet, Hamen, was attacked by the Lucians at that time. We would have given them gold, but they wanted to annihilate us and have the whole golden planet. It was total war, and we barely survived. It was three thousand Earth years before we could rebuild Hamen to a level where we could build starships. Then we came back.

Metrool said, Well, Arrista, don’t leave us hanging. What did they find?

Nothing—or almost nothing.

Metrool said, I don’t like the sound of that. What do you mean ‘almost nothing’?

They found nothing physical, but they found traces of our DNA in the earthlings.

Dagril asked, How is that possible?

Arrista said, Quite simple. Some interbred, and the others died off from natural or unnatural causes.

Everin, who was medically trained but not a practicing doctor, as the medical robot did that job, said, You mean earthlings and Hamens can interbreed?

Tekril, a scientist, said, That’s disgusting—mixing purified, DNA-corrected blood with these animals.

Arrista said, Well, a hundred thousand years ago, we weren’t DNA-corrected, and we were a lot like these animals.

Tekril said, Yes, we were undeveloped, but we were never like these people.

Well, about one thousand three hundred seventy Earth years ago, there were some in our governing body who felt that part of this planet’s problems were caused by those colonies and that our DNA interfered with their natural progression.

Well, they did nothing about it.

Oh, but they did. They sent a secret mission to Earth to try to put the planet back on its correct historical track.

Everin interrupted. Well, did it work? Tell us about this secret mission.

Arrista said, I can’t; it’s totally unrecorded. I was told this story by an old historian who had heard it from another historian.

Metrool asked, Then why do you put any faith in it?

When I heard this story, it intrigued me because of a peacemaker legend I had heard. So I began to make discreet inquiries about it.

Dagril said, Then tell us what you found out.

Arrista said, I didn’t find out anything, but the Controller sent his personal envoy to talk to me. They told me the mission was just a legend but let me know in no uncertain terms that I was not to ask about it anymore.

Tekril said, The Controller’s personal envoy? He isn’t seen in public, and he came to you to shut you down?

Arrista said, Yes, but as he walked to his floater, he turned around and said, ‘It worked.’ Then he was gone.

Dassrilla, Tekril said, muttering a cuss word. Then there really was a mission.

Arrista said, I don’t know for sure, but I truly believe there was, and yes, I believe it worked too.

Metrool said, How can you say that? What evidence do you have?

I have observed that since the time of that legendary mission, there are groups of people who put society’s welfare ahead of their own.

Alerton said, Weren’t there always a few people like that? Persons who gave up everything for someone else?

Yes, but it was basically individuals sacrificing for their kin or someone they cared about. Now the effort is organized. People are working as a group to make things better.

Dagril said, But these very groups have done some terrible things.

Arrista said, Yes, these groups have done some atrocious things, but that mission had only a few Earth years and had to make strictly an ideological change; they could not physically change a million beings.

Slowly, the dining area emptied, until only Alerton and Arrista remained.

Alerton said, You lied. I’ve never known you to lie in all the Earth years I’ve known you. Why lie about this?

Arrista pushed her long hair back, and Alerton saw it still had full color. You know I’ve been on many of these voyages; I am more than seven hundred Earth years old. This will be my last trip, but you know my family have a long record of being historians.

Yes, you and your family are well known for your public service and totally honest histories.

Well, I never said this, but I had a relative on that mission—the mission that doesn’t exist in any history. When he came home to Hamen, he was a changed man. All he ever said was that the leader of the mission, who used the name Joshua, had sacrificed himself for the good of the planet, when the ship had the means to save him. Alerton, we have been friends for a long time; please do not abuse our friendship by repeating these words.

Arrista, my friend of many years, I understand the sacrifice you made to tell me this, and I would never abuse our friendship.

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In another part of the ship, Dagril was among the escape pods. The pods could carry three occupants, and they were outfitted for the blending in and survival of the crew, but they also were self-destructive, in compliance with the rules about not interfering.

Dagril put something heavy into pod three and rearranged some other heavy objects in the pod. Dagril looked around to make sure no one was watching. There were no surveillance devices on the pod deck, for the pods hadn’t been used in more than six hundred Earth years, and there was no crime on the ship.

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On the deck right above the pod deck was the science deck. Alerton joined Everin and Metrool there, and on different screens, they scanned some information the ship had picked for them to review. The ship knew the type of information each one preferred.

Suddenly, the room turned red and orange, and the computer said in a loud, clear voice, The energy pod is about to consume itself. Thirty Earth seconds. Twenty-nine Earth seconds. All who remain on the ship will cease to exist. Twenty-six seconds.

Alerton popped out of his shock, shoved Everin and Metrool down the escape tube, and then jumped into the tube. Alerton found Everin and Metrool climbing into pod number five, and he joined them and pushed the large launch button. The hatch slammed automatically just as the hatch in front of them was blown away so they could escape. They were painfully pushed back in their seats as the computer tried to get them away from the exploding ship.

2

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EXPLOSION

The acceleration did not ease up until after the computer felt the shock wave of the doomed ship. In a clear voice, the pod’s computer said, The ship no longer exists. Only four beings escaped.

Four? Everin said. Who is the fourth?

The computer answered, Dagril is the fourth, in pod three.

Metrool was at the controls, and Alerton said, See if you can find him on the screen.

Metrool said, Yes, I have him on the screen. He’s stable, with good life signs, and he has dialed in coordinates and told the computer to descend.

Dial in those same coordinates, and follow him down.

Here we go. This is a one-way trip.

Yes, I know, but I feel we will be better off if we are together.

Soon the atmosphere began to batter the pod, making tearing sounds. The pod shook and lurched, and their body holders squeezed them tighter to keep them in their seats. The computer was calling out hull temperatures: 312, 417, and then 544.

Metrool said, Something’s wrong.

Everin said, Metrool, what’s wrong?

Not us. Dagril’s pod is going too fast. It’s getting too hot. It might break up.

Alerton said, But, Metrool, other than the coordinates’ override, these pods are totally automatic.

Metrool said, True, but Dagril may have altered the controls.

Everin asked, Why would he do that?

Suddenly, their minds were pierced by waves of pain and anguish from Dagril. His pod was overheating, and they could literally feel his pain. The temperature in Dagril’s pod was going up and up, but there was nothing they could do.

Dagril, sharing through the pain, said, I’m sorry; I meant to do good and help these beings we caused so much pain and sorrow to.

Everin said, I have to help him. Her body went rigid, and she began to moan. She was absorbing some of Dagril’s pain. Their pain eased as they felt Dagril’s life force going.

Everin said, That bastard. He just vaporized twenty-six Hamens. Why did I feel I had to do that?

Metrool answered, It was the right thing to do.

I have never heard of twenty-six Hamens dying at the same time. So many. Wonderful Arrista. She put her hands to her face.

Metrool said, We all loved and respected them. Dassrilla! May Dagril sleep with the Lucians.

Alerton asked, Has his pod broken up?

Metrool said, No, the computer has it back in control. It’s going to make a fairly normal landing.

Punch the exact coordinates of where he lands. We have to make sure these pods do what they’re supposed to do.

Metrool said, Yes, we’ll be right beside him in about two Earth minutes after he lands. I have my hands on the emergency thrusters. One Earth minute till landing. He counted down with ten seconds to go. They landed.

Alerton took a deep breath. Good work. He then told the computer, Open the hatch.

The hatch opened with a hiss, and the three Hamens climbed out, looked around, and took test breaths of the Earth air.

Everin said, It’s very close to Hamen’s air. That is why they picked it for the prime colony. This combination of water and air is rare.

Their attention went to Dagril’s smoking pod. Reluctantly, they walked the short distance to it.

Alerton inspected it and then said, Computer, open the hatch.

There was a short delay as the computer analyzed his voice to see if it was authorized, and then the hatch opened. All three stepped back. The way Dagril looked and the smell from the pod were terrible, and the three walked away.

After Alerton pulled himself together, he went back to the open hatch and asked, Computer, why did the pod overheat?

The computer said, The pod was overloaded with unauthorized equipment.

Alerton said, List this equipment.

The computer said, One hundred Earth pounds of medicine, ten pounds of special seeds, fourteen pounds of printed paper, twenty pounds of medical equipment, twenty pounds of antique medical equipment, thirty pounds of synthetic jewels, one hundred pounds of silver coins, twenty pounds of imitation florins, and two hundred standard gold bars. The total weight is nine hundred six Earth pounds over a pod’s limit.

Bewildered, Metrool said, I’m surprised it did not burn up. That is way over the capacity of a pod.

Everin said, The medicine was destroyed by the heat.

Alerton said, It is just as well that it was. I feel we would have been tempted to use it.

Everin said, "What do you mean tempted? That medicine could have cured a lot of diseases down here."

Alerton said, Now, listen to me. What we have been through does not change the rules. We cannot change things. We must blend in and make a comfortable and safe life for ourselves, but we cannot subvert the Controller’s rules. They will come for us, and I don’t want us to be criminals when they arrive.

Metrool said, We must empty the pods before they are vaporized.

Alerton said, Yes, thank you, Metrool. Let’s work quickly. You and Everin empty ours, and when you finish, you can help me. Metrool, you have a geographic survey of this locale on your personal computer, don’t you?

Yes, and the pod was updating it as we came down. Yes, I have a detailed map of this area.

Ask it if there is an unused building or cave we can use to store our goods.

Metrool said after a short wait, The computer’s best choice is a cave about half an Earth mile away.

Alerton said, It will be a lot of work, but we need to get everything and ourselves into that cave before daylight. The locals are going to be scared but curious about the lights they saw tonight.

Everin said, A cave? I’ve never been inside a cave.

Metrool laughed. Neither have I, except in a simulator. But I feel we will have a lot of new experiences.

Working quickly, they loaded the floaters to their capacity, and each picked up a heavy bag. It took three trips, and it was nearly daylight when they were through.

Alerton walked up to pod five and said to the computer, We have removed everything we need. You can proceed with your programming. He walked back to where Everin and Metrool were, and they watched the pod begin to glow. They turned their backs. They knew a major flash was coming.

After they felt the flash, they turned to look, and the pod was gone. Metrool walked over to pod three and followed the same process.

They entered the cave, which was S-shaped and barely high enough to stand.

Alerton asked, Do those emergency cases have mentats in them?

Metrool said, Yes, they both do.

Take one to the mouth of the cave, and set it for severe fear. I don’t want anyone to come into the cave. And set a comfort device to light and warm our area of the cave.

Everin said, I think it’s time we did the rememotory ceremony.

The three survivors formed a small circle, and each placed his or her right hand on the left shoulder of the next. They leaned forward, putting their heads close, and all three recalled their memories of the lost crew members one by one. Finally, they were to the last, and they could all see wise Arrista. Strangely, Arrista looked at them directly, and mentally, they heard her words: You have a wonderful opportunity.

Mentally exhausted, the three survivors collapsed to the cave floor and slept where they fell.

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Five hours later, they awoke. They activated the food producer, and it began to create edible wafers in the flavors they requested. After eating, they opened the bags containing clothes fitting for the period and locale.

Metrool, looking at Alerton, laughed and said, If the crew could only see you now.

Alerton said, Well, you don’t exactly look like a handsome spaceman in your outfit.

Everin said, Yes, we are all wearing too many and too fancy clothes, but at this time and place, your social position is defined by the opulence of your clothes, and we want to be perceived as rich people, so we must dress the part.

Metrool had his computer in his hands. I took Dagril’s memchip out of his pod. Look at this. He displayed a 3D projection of the local terrain. They could see traveling merchants and the city they would be going to.

Everin said, Dagril was planning this for a while.

Alerton said, Yes, but this will help us. Metrool, you did us a service when you saved this chip.

The three did a quick scan. They would study the information in detail later. Their lives depended on it.

Everin said, We have to be extremely careful in what we say and do. These people believe in witches and magic, and any of our magic could get us burned at the stake.

Alerton replied, Yes, that’s why this time, the only magic we’ll take is the defense built into our headdresses. And three small vaporizers.

Metrool said, Yes, the brain-wave intensifier. Do you really think it could kill an earthling?

Everin said, Of course. You just go into their mind and stop their heart from beating.

Alerton said, I repeat: you have to be very careful with your mind. Yes, we have the power to scan their minds and read their thoughts, but Hamen experts believe the earthlings would think we were the devil. So do not probe. You can let your mind be sensitive and just pick up what they’re thinking at the time. Of course, you can sense their feelings, such as fear, hate, greed, and even like or dislike, I suppose.

Everin asked, What about love?

Metrool said, You mean real Hamen love or what these crude people call love?

Everin said, I sometimes feel we Hamens have refined and controlled our emotions too well.

Metrool said, Oh, Alerton, look out—Everin is already romanticizing these people.

They studied the information and made plans for what they would do. Finally satisfied, they relaxed, ate some wafers, and drank some synthesized nectin, a drink that relaxed and stimulated the drinker. Metrool asked, What do you think of the mystery voyage to Earth? Do you think it really happened?

Alerton said, I’ve been thinking about it, and there are a couple of things I do know. It was in that time period that we had the great government change.

Everin asked, What happened during the change?

Well, before that event, the Controller wasn’t called the Controller; he was called the Faathir of Hamen. According to one story, because of some disgrace, the Faathir resigned right in the middle of his service years. Well, the citizens were very disturbed, and they changed a lot of things, so now we have the Controller. Alerton added, Today will be a very unusual day.

It was midmorning before they went out of the cave. They couldn’t help but talk about the night before.

Metrool spoke up. We looked at Dagril’s memory chip last night. I think you will find it helpful.

Alerton activated the Tok and began to scan it. Yes, he had the merchants’ travel routes laid out. He landed us close to a route leading to a city named Florence. He even has folders on some of the local businesses and traders.

Wow, Everin said, Dagril was deep into this.

Yes, Metrool said, he must have been planning this for a long time. And he must have spent years figuring out how to bypass all the safety systems on the ship.

They had buried 90 percent of their equipment; they would come back for it soon.

Alerton said, The only devices we will take with us at this time are the brain-wave enhancers and the vaporizers. Both are small and easy to conceal, and both can self-destruct if necessary.

They checked what else they would take: ten gold bars; three bags of florins, each weighing about five pounds; and ten pounds of silver coins. Everin took a pound of selected jewels. The coins were all counterfeit; they hoped they passed. They had buried all the other riches and devices except for two: a mentat at the entrance to the cave to cause deep fear and a second mentat located close to their hoard that could do physical damage to anyone who came too close.

3

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GOING TO FLORENCE

They went the short distance to the trade route but waited behind some trees so they could observe the travelers first. The first two traders who went by gave off bad vibes, but the third one, with two horse-drawn wagons and six pack mules, seemed to be what they needed. They approached him, and with a little thought-wave persuasion and two gold coins, he was their ally.

It was afternoon when they entered Florence. Taking the trader’s advice, they went to the inn named the Arno and acquired two rooms on the second floor. Then they walked around the city, keeping their minds open to receiving people’s thoughts. They were pleasantly surprised to find most of the people pleasant and honest. They saw the city had a choice of banks and had an artistic community, which was a major interest to Metrool, for he was an artist.

While they were eating at the inn, Alerton caught some vibes from some businessmen drinking and talking over in one corner. He leaned close to his companions and said, This may be a break for us. One of the major banks is in trouble. The banker has a good reputation, but he financed a major trading venture, and there was a bad storm that sank three of the five ships. Now the bank is about to sink. I feel we have found our bank.

A good bank that we can save, Everin said. The banker will owe us, and we need friends who have obligations to us.

Yes, Metrool said, I caught some of the conversation, and it sounds good. He added, Alerton, do you want to be our bank man?

Yes, Alerton said, if you two approve, I think I would like that job.

Everin and Metrool both said they thought he was the right one for the task.

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The next morning, after eating breakfast with Everin and Metrool, Alerton got with the inn owner to help him. He had the owner hire a scribe and two guards to go to the bank with him.

At the bank, Alerton asked the banker’s assistant for a private meeting with the banker. The assistant was suitably impressed, and soon Alerton was in the banker’s private office. There was some small talk and wine. Alerton lightly probed him and saw he was an honest man in deep trouble who was hoping for a miracle. Alerton got to the point and hit hard, saying, I heard rumors, and I searched, and I know your bank is in trouble.

The banker turned pale; he had hoped this man had not heard about his plight.

Alerton said, My brother and sister and I have gold—a lot of gold. We can save your bank. Hamen had four ethnicities, and because of the DNA project, everyone of each ethnicity looked very much alike. Alerton, Everin, and Metrool were the same ethnicity, so they’d decided to present themselves as siblings.

The banker waited for the other shoe to drop. What did this strange, tall man want?

Of course, we want a good return on our gold, but we want more.

If I give you too much, my bank will fail anyway.

We do not want extra money, Alerton said. We want and need a friend in the business community who knows everything and everybody.

I’ve lived here all my life, the banker said, and I can be that friend.

Alerton scanned him lightly and saw he was telling the full truth. Soon they had the scribes writing up papers, and the gold man took the three bags of gold from the guards and emptied them out onto the counting table. He began weighing the Hamen gold.

Alerton asked the banker for a private talk, and once they were in the banker’s office, he said, My brother and sister and I have a lot more gold and silver. We will put some of it in your bank and some in other banks. How much we put in your bank will depend on how much you do for us. Alerton saw that the banker had a major conflict inside him. He said, Tell me. What is bothering you?

The banker, obviously terribly embarrassed, sweating, said, If I tell you, you may pull your gold back out.

Tell me, Alerton said.

The banker said, Your gold covers everything now, but in two months, I will need twenty more pounds.

Alerton scanned him and saw it was an honest answer. You be our friend and help us meet people and buy houses and maybe a business, and you will have your twenty pounds of gold.

To show you I am really that friend, and because you are new to Florence, I will tell you. The last twenty or so years have been colder than usual, and our grapes and olives have not done as well as usual. Our farmers have learned to cope, but some lost out. Then last year, the year of our Lord 1346, was very bad for business here in Florence. Three important banks failed. And now in 1347, we have had six months of rainy weather. Farmers either can’t get in their fields to plant or can’t get in their fields to harvest. Some of the farmers make a few grossi by catching rabbits, cats, or squirrels for the cloak makers over by the Duomo.

Before he left, Alerton had two signed and sealed copies of their wealth and an invitation for all three to a celebration the banker was giving that night. The banker told Alerton to call him Abram. His last name was Termini.

Soon Alerton was back at the inn, talking to his so-called brother and sister. He told them everything that had happened.

Great, Metrool said.

Yes, Everin said, you did great.

Alerton turned to Everin and said, You need to go shopping and buy some expensive clothes that flaunt your charms.

At first, Everin was aghast, but then she smiled. Yes, she said, I must remember that here, my intellect does not count; my cleavage does.

Metrool laughed. "That is putting it a little rough but is