Untitled

A Story by rutgersstudent

This is a sci-fi piece of writing that I started on a while back. I have the core story and message made (its about the nature of humanity) but am struggling a bit with the late-middle part

Researcher’s Log #0001: It is May 14^th, 2303. The first of the ships has launched, its destination being Earth-R, the Russian colony. Over the last decade the preparations for Project Exodus have been made with excruciating detail. When the United Nations Space Agency first discovered the cluster of 9 earth-like life-supporting planets, hope for the resolution of the world’s problems started to matriculate in the leading scientists mind. With a planet plagued by over population and constant wars for dwindling resources the white-hairs at UNSA saw the cluster, nicknamed “Canaan” as their answer. Within three years of finding “Canaan” the UNSA had conducted a series of tests, “National Strength Index tests” were the official names but in reality very little importance were put into these tests as the 9 nations chosen had also been the 9 biggest funders of the UNSA and also the 9 biggest nations in the world. The other nations were determined “gone without hope” and doomed to stay on earth. USA, Russia, China, Mexico, The United Kingdom, Poland, Germany, Italy, and South Africa were the 9 nations chosen to inhabit the 9 planets, with each nation occupying their own planet. The planets were therefore named Earth-A, Earth-R, Earth-C, Earth-M, Earth-U, Earth-P, Earth-G, Earth-I, and Earth-S respectively. I have been assigned to join the United States colony tasked to report back to the USNA the news and developments that occur on the planet. It is with a hopeful heart that I embark on this flight, this exodus, to a new life. Thomas Locke, UNSA Executive Researcher signing off.

Researcher’s Log #0002: The United States ship has landed on Earth-A, although five years after launch date, establishing this day as Washington 1 0001 A.E. (After Exodus). Because Earth-A doesn’t have the same annual cycle as our Earth does a new dating system has been made to accommodate the new 400 day year of this planet. The American government, under UNSA approval, has divided the calendar into 10 months of 40 days with the months being named after the first ten presidents of the Nation. Upon entering the orbit I noticed that there was two distinctive features of our new home; the first being that there was about a 60-40 split in surface area between water and land. The second being that there was only two large continents on this planet, however both were positioned in such a way that the regions of the continents were approximately the same in terms of percentage of equatorial area and polar area. After the landing was first made the president of the nation, President Henry Wallace, devised a plan for the colonization of the planet. The people who had lived in the northern most states plus Hawaii and Alaska stayed on the current continent which the President himself would reside. These peoples numbered around 500 million. The remaining peoples, numbering around 550 million, would be moved to the other continent where the vice president, Edward Smith, would reside. I believe this is a good plan as the continents can bear the weight of these numbers with ease, however I am skeptical of the separation in leadership, despite the fact the two men have been friends since childhood and dreamed of running the country together since their 10^th birthdays when the two visited Washington D.C. for the first time. I chose to rotate every 5 months-200 days- between the continents to be able to record accurately on the American colony. Thomas Locke, UNSA Executive Researcher signing off.

Researcher’s Log #0003: I am coming to an end in my first stay on Wallace Continent, the new name given to the land mass by the President himself. The city-building ability of the Americans has yet again proven exemplary, as there have been three major cities, out of an assortment of around a hundred, founded in the northernmost region, the central region on the Eastern coast, and one in the south western part of the continent. The Northernmost city, in the region the Americans have named “The Tundra” is the city of Lincoln, named after the famed American president. This city, due to its surrounding area, has become a major hub of mining as well as timber production, with the majority of its 30 million residents working in such industries. The eastern coastal city, the capital of the continent of the Wallace continent and also the American nation, is named New Washington, an homage to the capital on Earth. This city has become the leading trade city, as its massive port, larger than any port back home, has allowed for massive trade and booming commercial industries which many of its 50 million residents enjoy. There is also the head of all political activities in the capital building, which is a mirror image of the old one. The final of the three cities, the western city, is named Capricornia, a name given for the major industry of the city, which is agriculture and other foodstuff. This 27 million person city sits in the middle of the fertile lands on the banks of the largest river on the continent, Rodgers River (named after the captain of the Project Exodus ship). I am extremely impressed in the infrastructure that has been put in place on Wallace continent, however it leads me to wonder if such production is being seen on the other planets in Canaan, and more importantly if there is on Smith Continent. Thomas Locke, UNSA Executive Researcher signing off.

Researcher’s log #0004: It has been a week since I have landed on Smith Continent in their capital city of New Los Angeles, a city on the western portion of the continent on the coast, which in this aspect seems very similar to New Washington. However this is one noticeable difference; New Los Angeles houses a little over 150 million people. This massive city, whose size and limits are almost akin to the city-state, is, in my opinion, the result of an extremely subpar effort of exploration and colonization. Edward Smith has seemed to occupy with the task of cementing is authority, that the troubles of colonization have led him away from such attempts. To my knowledge there is only one other major city on this continent, Franklin, is located in the eastern part of the continent and functions much like the city of Capricornia on Wallace continent. This city is currently housing an estimate of around 80 million people. I am a little disappointed in the progress on Smith continent, however it is far from horrible as there is still an amble economy and road system for the current time period. I have also received my first status update from the researchers located on the other planets in Canaan. Poland, the United Kingdom, China, Germany, and Italy have made similar progress as the Americans, with the British seeming to be doing the best (colonization runs in their blood). South Africa and Russia have both faced initial troubles, the landing sites seemed to have malfunctioned for both nations and placed them in harsher climates in the beginning. Worrisomely, Mexico seems to be struggling massively with their separation of leadership, as their planet is made up of many island like continents with a size similar to India. I do hope that all the planets, and Smith continent for that matter, begin to find more ease in their colonization efforts. However with our technology that we are possessed with today, I am still optimistic. Thomas Locke, UNSA Executive Researcher signing off.

Researcher’s log #0005: President Wallace visited New Los Angeles today to check up on the progress of his nation’s colonization effort on Smith continent. I was able to stay in the room while Wallace and Smith discussed the efforts led by Smith. Although Wallace was visibly upset with the foundation of only two megacities and the lack of presence in the northern and southern ends of the continent, the mood towards the two was still relaxed and amiable. After the serious matters were covered the conversation shifted to childhood stories and memories. The two have been through a lot together, as they have been together since kindergarten. Growing up in North Dakota the two men were born to working class families and often had to deal with the struggles of not having a lot of family wealth. However, both exceeded in school and received full-academic scholarships to Harvard University where the two would room together throughout undergrad and law school. They were both best man at each other’s wedding and godfathers to each other’s first born son. After both men had been elected to congress, they rose to national fame when they championed a bill that kept the military defense budget at the same level, defending it against a massive cut. From there the men went on to run for presidency and with a decisive win became the men in charge over the exodus of the American people. The friendship between the two men, even on a completely new planet filled with new troubles and stresses, seems to remain as strong as it’s ever been. I believe these two men will be able to lead this country to a prosperous new age on Planet-A. Thomas Locke, UNSA Executive Researcher signing off.

Researcher’s log #0006: Today marks a year from L-day (landing day) and the nation- the planet- is rejoicing in the festivities. President Wallace and Vice President Smith appeared on a planet-wide broadcast where the two discussed the success of the nation. The development of the large intracontinental road system for both Wallace and Smith continent, the creation of the large space port that hovers around the planet which is set to act as a both a weather tracking system and also a hub for interplanetary travel, and the successful crop harvests on both continents were the main topics of discussion. I was walking through the streets of New Washington while the address was going one, being broadcasted across the city, and I must note the extremely jubilant mood that was radiating from the city and its residents. It is important to note that this year was not only the first year that Americans have lived on a planet other than earth, but also the first year that Americans have lived in a year without war in over 300 years. It appears to me that the goal of the UNSA is starting to be achieved, and I am completely optimistic that it will be. Perhaps the thousand years of peace humanity was promised did not require Christ to come back after all. Thomas Locke, UNSA Executive Researcher signing off.

Researcher’s log #0007: Dismaying news came today from Planet-M, the Mexican colony. My colleague, Miguel Dos Santos, informed the USNA that the Mexican colony has split up into various “nations” with individual cartels claiming an island-continent as their own land. The Mexican government still possess the largest of the islands, the hub of the planet, but has been somewhat unsuccessful in regaining the land from the cartels. The use of force has occurred on the planet, and although there is no war there is still conflict that the USNA didn’t want to see in their experiment. We are not sure how the USNA is going to respond to this development, but we understand that a decision will be made soon. I hope that this problem can be resolved quickly and the Mexican planet can come under control once again. I am thankful that there has been no such developments within the American colony, or on the other planets. I am hopeful that the conflict will end quickly. Thomas Locke, UNSA Executive Researcher signing off.

Researcher’s log #0008: I am coming to a close on my second stay on Wallace continent and I am leaving the continent with much content for how things are going. The three major cities are thriving and there have also been large increases in production and residents in other cities like New Chicago, New Philadelphia, and Polk City (named after past US President James K. Polk). There is also a thriving suburban environment on the continent as well, something that had been a trade mark of America in the 19^th and 20^th centuries. Wallace, in a smart decision, has further divided the continent into 10 smaller regions that were set up in the same manner as states were on earth. Within these regions there is ten smaller regions that are also divided up in similar manners as counties. The economy of the continent is also thriving, there have been a few down periods but this is to be expected in the early stages of a new colony. The most impressive thing about this colony however so far is that there has been no conflict amongst the citizens in this colony, both within this continent and also the other continent. I am very optimistic about the progress of this colony and hopefully all of the other planets as well. We are still waiting on news from the UNSA about Planet-M. Thomas Locke, UNSA Executive Researcher singing off.

Researcher’s log #0009: The UNSA has sent all of the researchers their decision today. I cannot say that I am surprised by this decision. “Due to the circumstances that have arisen within the Mexican colony on Planet-M, the United Nations Space Agency has been forced to take immediate action to save the integrity of Project Exodus. It is for this reason that Planet-M has been kicked out of the grouping of planets called Canaan, and therefore leaving Planet-M and the Mexican colony out of the UNSA jurisdiction. Our reasoning in this is that the Mexican nation was filled with internal turmoil for numerous years, therefore excluding it from the test. The implementation of this decision will be immediate. All funding and USNA assets on Planet-M, including researcher Miguel Dos Santos, will be cut and removed from the planet immediately.”

Researcher’s log #XXXX: War has engulfed Planet-A. Once friends, family, and countrymen the two factions, the Wallace Army and the Edward Army, send waves and waves of young men and women to die. The warfare is bloody and horrific. Last week alone the death toll from a battle in the eastern part of “The Tundra” surpassed 300,000 with the cold taking half as many as the bullets did. President Wallace has sent me to the base of operations for the United America which is located in the middle of the continent, hidden within the Freedom Mountain Range that streaks down the center of Wallace continent like the spine of a human does to their back. The President feels confident in a United America victory, and with each new battle report his optimism rises and rises. With every battle report, however, my pessimism increases. I believed that this grand project of the UNSA would work, bringing not only peace and space to earth, but also bringing peace and space to the other 9 planets of Canaan by only sending one country to each planet. I truly believed that this would truly be the human race’s Canaan, just as the original had been for the Hebrews. However my hope proved foolish. If there is no enemy, man will make an enemy, even if that means fighting within one’s own tribe/family/nation. I have witnessed a nation that was not only proud of its nationalism, but also abundant in it, shoot bullets into countrymen they used to sing the Star Spangled Banner with. I have seen best friends lead millions of men and women against each other. I have seen man show his true nature, his nature of war/anger/hate. Many, like me, believed that man was good, that man could find a way, even if it meant leading the largest exodus in human history, to end war. We were wrong. There is still war on earth. There is still war on Planet-A. There is still war on every single planet in Canaan. Every single one. There will always be war. There will never be peace, so long as man exists. There will never be a true Canaan. Thomas, USNA Executive Researcher signing off.