Journey

Lorelei: Darkness

I have learned a lot over the past few days. The Commander helps me make the good decisions for the ship. I have learned about many things. My first thing I did as a Commander was an EVA. The ship needed a repair so we EVA'd for the first time in a long time. That's when I saw it. A giant white star. The Commander than confirmed what I thought when it identified the star as Allura. We were so close to our new home. I finished up the EVA and was called to the upper decks. They were pristine and white. Everything in an order and nothing out of place. I got to the navigational room and than saw we had three days before landing. My first thought was to share the news with everyone but the Commander whispered "Not yet". I asked when and the Commander said "The 600th celebration,". So that's when I am telling everybody. Me and Alivia have been in the Bridge nonstop for the past few days. We have been so close to receiving transmission for days now. So close.It has been decades since we have been able to get this close to transmission. Ever since it was wiped out a few decades ago. We fixed it but weren't able to push our new signal out far enough for earth to receive it. Ever since its seems the ship has fallen into chaos compared to what it was before. I guess that's why the people don't know how close we are. It would cause all sorts of drama that we don't want so we don't. Me and all the people on the bridge have been going through some training to land the ship. Even though they have known how ever since they first joined the Ship's crew. We try to think of it as a refresher course. I don't need it since the Commander will tell me everything I need to know to land the ship but I don't want to have to rely on the Commander for everything. What kind of leader would that make me?

"Commander? I think you should hear this," Third shipper Kofi said.

I walk over to the Transmission board where Kofi is sitting.

"What is it Third Shipper Kofi?"

"Listen," He replies.

I pull on the headphones.

"Captain of Darkness. Hear me and know that we don't want to be your enemy. Please tell us your intentions and any potential problems you are bringing to our peaceful planet of Cambaar," The male voice said.

His words sounded promising but something in his voice told me that he was a stone cold leader.

"Hello Cambaar. This is the Commander of Darkness. We have no violent intentions. We just want to colonize some land. We hope you will except us. We are planning on landing on your planet in three days. We please ask you to not attack us and allow us to survive peacefully."

We wait for another transmission but it doesn't come so we go back to the refresher course. After another hour of the course we take a break. Alivia and I head to the cafeteria. I'm not hungry but I needed to get off the bridge and away from people. Seeing as it is 2:00 no one is in the Cafeteria and we have it all to ourselves.

"Something was off about him Lorelei," Alivia finally says.

"I agree."

We sit there in silence for a while before Alivia speaks again.

"We are really going to land after all this time," She says.

"I just wish my Mom was here for this," I say quietly.

Alivia looked down.

"She would be happy for you Lorelei. Before your Mom married your dad our Mothers were best friends and all my mom would talk about when you were born was how she believed that you would be able to see the planet. She would say that your mom was crazy and we were never going to land but here we are," Alivia said.

I sometimes forget that Alivia is older than me but it doesn't matter.

Anyway we were going through the refresher course when we heard something from the transmission board.

"Lets go walk around," I say.

I get up and walk to the stairwell. We walk down. I am determined. Now that I am Commander of the ship I feel the need to know every square inch of the ship. I have never been to the bottom level of the ship. No one has. I know its just my curiosity because The commander doesn't like this plan at all.

"So where are we going Cousin?" Alivia askes.

"The first level," I say.

Alivia's eyes bug out.

"No one has been down there in years," Alivia says.

"And that's why we are doing it," I say.

She gets a mischievous gleam in her eyes. We race down past the floors to the first level. We find a door. It looks old. It has a Bio Scanner though. Alivia runs her thumb over it.

Access denied it chirps.

I run my finger over it.

Lorelei Jameson access granted.

The door swings open and the room is dark inside.

"Well someone obviously has been down here seeing as your DNA is already coded into the Bio Scanner." Alivia says.

We walk inside and the lights flicker on. Inside the air is cold and stale. It smells even more recycled than the air upstairs. We walk down the narrow hallways that inhabit this floor. Several doors have Bio Scanners. Some have a different type of scanner that I haven't seen before. I open the door named Genetics Lab. Inside there are several cylinders of Blue flecked water that has tiny bubbles in it.

"What are those?" Alivia asks.

"Well it's a Genetics Lab isn't it? My guess is embryos," I say.

"You mean babies?" She asked.

"Yeah. My guess is animal embryos that we might need for Terraforming," I say.

"Smart," Alivia nods approvingly.

We walk out of the Genetics Lab. We walk further down until we come across a door labeled History. I roll my thumb over the Bio Scanner. We walk in and see books. Hundreds of books. Than we see the door further into the from labeled Personal Recollections. I walk in and see bookshelves piled with journals. I pick up the nearest one and read the first page.

Dear journal,

My name is Rebekkah. My mom said that keeping a journal would help the time pass faster. While that may be true I agreed for another reason. I hoped it would ease my guilt. I have done a terrible thing. I have made an invention that is the purest form of evil. It makes people compliant to the mission. An AI that is so powerful it takes over the person's mind. I've only made one but even if that one gets into the wrong hands the result would be catastrophic. That's why I have hidden it down on the secret level of the ship. I feel I have a confession to make so here is my story. I have always been interested in science. When I was 13 I started apprenticing in the Labs on the first floor. I learned and advanced quickly. The scientist I was apprenticing for was very proud of me and showed me off whenever he had the chance. I got out of chemicals and physics though. I found I enjoyed math and engineering. However my science background became useful when I built my invention. I got out of my apprenticeship with the scientist. I apprenticed directly under the captain. The captain required that I do an extracurricular project. I pondered for weeks on what to do. Than I thought back to Robert Sanderson. He didn't like the mission. At all. Whatsoever. The captain floated him. Than it hits me. I can create an AI that will turn the most rebellious people willing to help the mission. So I draw up plans for the Invention.