Planet of the Dead
By Rudy Chase
WHEN the wind blows through the streets and manmade canyons
of the
city!" it sounds like the wailing of spirits of the dead,
the
metropolis has been abandoned for centuries as the planet of BALDER
is, on
which the city was built the world is fourth in orbit in a solar
system
of twelve planets and revolves around the main sequence sun of
CAPELLA.
NOW!" the only living things that roam the broad avenues
are an
occasional animal, if one stood in the streets of this unnamed
city,
during late afternoon when the sun is beginning to set, they would
here
the shrill cries of the raptors that make their homes in the high
towers, the city is in remarkable condition, through weeds grow
in the
streets and the great stained glass windows are streaked with
the dust
of centuries. THE starship ANTARES had just emerged from warp
drive
and was sailing past the outer worlds. CAPTAIN JOHN BENEDICT was
seated to the rear of navigation!" when the klaxon went off,
the
sensor array indicated a asteroid field ahead, the shields snapped
on
automatically and just in time to avert a tragedy.
AS the ANTARES cruised past the gas giants of this system,
it's
sensor picked up the faint traces of life on the fourth planet,
captain
benedict ordered a course correction and at safe planetary speeds
arrived in the vicinity of BALDER, and took up orbit at a height
of
two hundred miles above the alien planet. FROM that height, the
crew
of experienced spacer could view the surface of the planet, although
the planet is somewhat larger then the EARTH, it is reminiscent
of their
home world, a vast sea filled with marine life very similar to
the sea
life in EARTH'S oceans and one very large super continent, with
varied
fauna and flora.
ALTHOUGH the sensors have indicated a number of cities on the
surface there are no signs of any intelligent activity on the
planet,
CAPTAIN BENEDICT ordered the shuttle Camelot to be taken down
to the
largest city on the planet and his second in command, lieutenant
Alex
bartrum complied a hand pick crew was selected. THE shuttle bay
doors
open and the Camelot was launched into the velvety blackness of
space,
the world on which they would soon be standing!" shone like
a sapphire,
sunlight reflecting off the oceans picked up the spirits of the
crew.
AS the shuttle cleaved its way through the atmosphere, its
heat
shields began to glow, if not for those heatshields the craft
would
burn up in the planet's atmosphere.
THE CAMELOT settled down near the city proper and shortly the
exit
door open and the crewmembers stepped on the soil of an alien
world
for the first since ALTAIR-FIVE many light-years away. THE five
crewmen were all experts in their particular fields, language,
computers, electronics, exobiology, while overhead the ANTARES
in
orbit!" keep in constant communication with the shuttle as
the group
headed for the metropolis. IT was an eerie feeling to walk through
this
alien city, one almost expected to see one of the inhabitants
to come
walking around a corner most of the doors were left wide open
as
through the people all left in a hurry, but not a soul was found.
PETER WATTS is the linguist expert and in one of the structures
he
found a diary written in the native language, it reminded him
of some
of the ancient EARTH WRITINGS, AFTER several hours of studying
the
language, he was able to decipher the alien tongue. IT is the
year
seven thousand BCE wrote kabar in his secret diary and tork called
on me today and had some rather grim news, a meteorite smashed
into the
atmosphere late last night, and by morning people were dropping
like
flies a disease was released by the meteorite. THE ALIEN VIRUS
has no
cure, it attacks the circulatory system and in short period of
time the
victim is dead, not only does it kill quickly, but it decomposes
the body
until there is only dust left of what once was a living, breathing
human being.
AFTER the diary was deciphered and the answers to what happened
to
the inhabitance, the whole population wiped out, vanished, gone
without
a trace.
EPILOGUE..... An order was issued to the landing party, upon
returning
to the ANTARES they were to be quarantined, until there was definite
proof that the alien virus was not in their blood and cellular
makeup.
THE PLANET was to be off limits to all space travel from the
EARTH
and a warning beacon was to be in place, to warn any possible
alien
space travelers of present danger on the planet BOLDAR, what a
shame
thought captain benedict, a whole race wiped out and what's even
worse
the planet might not be suitable for colonization, because of
a present
danger of infection from the virus, oh well!" Benedict thought
time would
tell he gave orders for their next destination. the end
