Fenning was right: I was very interested in what I found. It was a long trip though: the final waypoint was nearly 200 clicks from the last jumphole. But it was worth it. As I cleared the last cloud between myself and the destination, I forgot to breathe for nearly a minute.
There, laid out in orderly rows, was a fleet: the largest I'd ever seen. Even from a distance, I could make out scores and scores of titanic ships. Some of the configurations I recognized, some I had only seen in pictures, some I had never seen at all. But most amazing of all, nestled in the center of the fleet, was a ship greater than any of them. From a distance, all I could initially see was a cylindrical main body and an enormous array of engines. Each of the engines was bigger than almost every battleship I had ever seen.
"Quite a sight, isn't it?" A voice broke in over comms. I jumped. I hadn't even noticed the wing of Eagle fighters that had joined up with me. "What do you think, Tannik?" I was speechless. I think I squeaked slightly. Several seconds later, I managed to regain my vocabulary.
"What is it?" I asked.
"That, my friend, is the Discovery. As you can see, it isn't quite complete," Fenning responded. It had to be him. And now that we had almost reached it, I could see what he was talking about. The outer hull was mostly complete, but the scaffolding and construction ships scattered all over its surface attested to the ongoing construction. "It will be some time yet before she is ready to begin her journey."
"But what isit?" I asked again.
"A generational ship," he answered. "That ship is the future of humankind." Wow, I thought. Wow. Fenning continued, "one day, we will set her on a course that will take her to stars hundreds of light years away. Maybe even thousands. The Discovery, when complete, will be a self-contained world, able to sustain itself for centuries at a time, until she reaches a place where humanity can flourish, and plant itself anew among the stars. And perhaps, after establishing the colony and replenishing her own supplies, the Discovery will continue on after that to colonize yet other worlds."
"A pretty ambitious dream," I said admiringly. This was, in all senses of the word, the most incredible thing I had ever heard of. A generational ship, launched in the hopes that the descendants of the original pioneers would someday find safe harbor.
"It's the only future for humanity," said Fenning. "We must colonize, and we must expand beyond our petty differences and conflicts. If mankind is allowed to stagnate, we will perish. Tannik, you know this!"
"Yes Fenning, I do," I almost whispered.
"Call me Leroy."
I laughed. "All right, Leroy, here's a question for you. Why a generational ship? Why not sleeper ships?"
Leroy answered, "Good question. I have a good answer for you. The problem with a sleeper ship is that the people who arrive are the same as the ones who left. That's not what we want. We don't want old prejudices and old ways of thinking. We expect that in the generations the people aboard the Discovery are betwen the stars, they will forget. The conflicts over resources that spark war here in Sirius will simply not exist. After a few generations, many of them may not even really understand that there exists a universe outside the ship. When they finally arrive, they will be a different people."
"Then how will they finish their mission? I mean, someone has to pull the ship into orbit and get people onto the planet. Someone needs to find a planet for them: if they're going hundreds of light years away, they have no way of knowing where to go..."
Leroy interrupted, "...and who to protect them from danger? You're right, of course. That's what the rest of the fleet is for." I looked again at the scores of huge ships around me. "I said that most of the people would live their simple lives, growing food in internal biodomes. Not all."
"In the beginning, there will be two cultures. One will be the people that live in the Discovery, and lead a basic, happy, tranquil life. The other will be those that live in the fleet, and a few that fly the ship. The fleet are the scouts, the guardians, and the gatherers of whatever outside resources are needed. They are the ones who ensure that the journey is completed. Those on the ship who hunger for adventure and exploration will be allowed to join the fleet, and those who have served and want no more than to live out their lives in tranquility will be allowed to return to the generational ship."
"We don't know if that arrangement will endure. We have no way of knowing. Nevertheless, we believe and hope that it will work, and that if it doesn't, this isolated seed of humanity will find a way to adapt."
I sat back. Wow, I thought for about the millionth time.
"This has been a goal of the Zoners for quite some time," Leroy said. "This has been something that has been developing since the first Freeports were established. Actually, the arrival of the colonists of Battlestar Galactica gave us the idea and the ability to create the two-culture model. Thanks to them, we have the designs to create a fleet that can operate and flourish in deep space, and we've decided that such a fleet is the perfect complement to a generational ship. We have been and continue to use those designs to build a fleet that will be ready to cross the galaxy."
I thought for a very long time. Leroy was right: this ship is the future of humanity. Finally, I spoke. "How can I help?"
"Right now, resources. Just about everything, really. Fuel, supplies, electronics, engines, weapons... every once in a while, we may have you transport small groups of people that we have selected to be passengers on the ship. We intend to have the Discovery fully settled long before launch. And should this place ever be in danger, we hope you will help protect it. You see, Tannik, we know you. I know you. I've watched you for a long time. I have every reason to trust you and believe that you will be willing to help us."
"And you're right," I grinned. "I'm your man."
"Thanks Tannik," Leroy said quietly. "I knew we could count on you. Now, let's get back to civilized space, shall we?"
![[Image: aedos_mini.jpg]](http://students.cs.byu.edu/~sushi/aedos_mini.jpg)