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A Decent Land — Chapter One
Arrival
It was the binary star that attracted our ship. Its perpendicular twirls winked from a cosmic horizon. Then, our ark was on its five-hundredth generation (or somewhere thereabouts). Now we’re nearing six-hundred — a milestone — and the system is closer in reach. We sucked the sap of innumerable suns on a pinball trajectory to hope. Two at once may just be enough to sustain our enormous demands. There, we thought, we can finally settle; allow our ships to drift. Perhaps we can build a harnessing ring, and mould — from the remains of our graveyard fleet — a home for ourselves by the twins.
Legend dictates — and we assume it’s true — that our birthplace was lit by a trio of lifelamps. Our progenitors were used to the abundance of energy that came with a solar ménage à trois. After The Cataclysm — and the great exaltation of arks from our broken, dying planet — we simply wouldn’t settle for less. In fact, we based a religion around finding a mirror for home. The fundamentalists diverged from our path in generation two-hundred and eight. I hope they find their lost triumvirate, but we gave up on perfection. Two will do, we decided at last. Soon after that, we found them.
Surrounding the merry waltz of stars, we perceived a disk of dust. That was all we could see, at first, but — six generations ago — a world eventually came into view. It’s hidden deep in the orbiting flotsam, faithfully shadowed by two loyal moons. Such a gem, a prize, seemed impossible to even our most optimistic prophets.
The closer we get, the more we can note. It’s green, in patches, and blue with an ocean. The terraforming arks want a stab at it anyway, but consensus leans towards sending a party. If the air checks out, and the local flora’s edible, we’ll proceed with resettlement; conquer the fauna. From where we are now, on the edge of the system, we think we’ve determined the cosiest continent — the best place to start; the most promising prospect.
We call it “Yowunas Maias”, and it lies to the east of the globe (as we’ve mapped it). The landmass and its extended archipelagos hang just above the southernmost pole. It’s dry, arid and rocky; a result of the heat of its seasons. Volcanoes — active, and threatening eruption — form a circular range in the centre. In that vast and barren patch…
