Gravity Quiet

As our Starship drifted into this uncharted debris field, we blamed a navigational error and began a manual course correction. But there was no error, a SuperNova of a local Star had devastated the surrounding Galacitical domain.

Contact was made with the Benarh system. A dark, rarely visited,over-mined system of 7 planets tucked around Binary suns. We arranged for an emergency landing at a Space Port on Mudra Dakonn.

Almost the entire population lived underground in immense, partially open caves. In the large Rejev was the enormous towering Tree Of secrets.

Around the tree, rain fell from the opening in the rocks above. An eclipse of the planet's largest Moon brought with it an early twilight.

In order to arrange for parts and repair of our ship, we would need to travel underground to another Space Port far from our landing site. We traveled over a frozen underground sea filled with Shadow swimmers.

Nearing the Xomago Port complex, the airtrain began to slow down and soon we were above ground. We noticed several other Spacecraft had been forced down by the same events we had encountered.

The repairs and adjustments took about Nine Solar hours and with the help of our Antarian engineer friends we were flight worthy in a short time. Still the problem of navigation through the Magnetic disturbances produced by the Supernova remained.

Some planetary environments had been rendered hostile by the Supernova explosion. It was estimated that over Two-Hundred systems had been engulfed in this Magnetic Storm. Atmospheres on many worlds had become terminal.

As Terrans,our Human Nature makes us Creatures Of Habit. Survival is extinctive and expected, though the dangers were obvious and direct. Somehow a certain feeling of confidence, strength and faith remained with us all.

Lift off to Sub-Orbital was uneventful and precisely at time-set the Four Varium engines fired. In seventy seconds we were traveling 56,000 mlies per second. Through the static we listened for any sign of Intelligent Noise.

From sheer exhaustion I collapsed on my cabin's bed and fell into a deep sleep. Before long I began to dream I was on a Lost Planet and in the middle of a gossamer clearing stood The Tree Of Secrets.

Although Sub-Space radio has no limitations due to distance and occurs in real time, this transmission was made 20,000 years ago, but specifically directed to our ship, at this time and position.