Jacobi Jarzen Tadel Echoes of Freedom

1. Auflage 2014
ISBN: 978-0-9906318-0-4
Verlag: TeBo Publishing
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 206 Seiten

Jarzen Tadel and his family live of the peaceful agrarian planet Elapsis, and are easy prey for the Tar-Que, whose high council is obsessed with developing anything that will provide them with an intellectual advantage in a war in their home solar system . . . .

Autoren/Hrsg.

Jacobi, Robert

Leseproben

CHAPTER ONE ELAPSIS The sun shining through the open window caused Jarzen to stir and greet the day. He went to the west-facing window of his fourth story loft and looked out on acre upon acre of crops flourishing in the fields of the Tadel’s family farm. Jarzen then went to his east-facing window, shading his eyes against the rising sun. He looked down on the marina, to his way of thinking, the most beautiful sight in all the world. The water in the bay looked like a shining slice of aquamarine glass. While hardly noticing the wonderful view, Jarzen carefully checked the skies for ominous clouds or any other signs of impending bad weather. Jarzen was excited. Today was his nineteenth birthday; he was to spend the day fishing; and the evening with Sharasta, the love of his life. The sun was well above the horizon when Jarzen, his father Ormal, and two of his brothers Hazan and Rachio, finally got the family’s eighty-five foot fishing trawler, the Lady Mia underway. Having convinced his father to spend a second day fishing for red fish; Jarzen triumphantly told his brothers when they arrived. They were returning to the outer reef where the fishing had been very good the day before, bringing them home early with a full hold of red fish and silver darters. The Tadel Clan, as Jarzen’s mother often referred to the family, was fairly typical of the peaceful, prosperous planet Elapsis; mother, father, and lots of children. Jarzen was the youngest of seven, with three older brothers and three older sisters. The Tadel family was more prosperous and a lot more industrious than their neighbors; most of whom either farmed or fished. The Tadel’s farmed and fished. Jarzen had a great passion for fishing; while he farmed with reluctance, a trait he shared with his father. Life on Elapsis was good; the soil was rich and fertile and would grow anything. The oceans and bays teemed with fish, ensuring a good catch on almost every trip. At nineteen, Jarzen thought life couldn’t be better. With his brothers all eager and able farmers, Jarzen could already see himself as Captain of the Lady Mia and head of the family’s fishing fleet. Jarzen’s thoughts of the future were interrupted by Hazan and Rachio, who were in a heated argument about the unpredictable, unforgiving weather on the open ocean. Rachio was again stressing it had only been two weeks since the Milters’ ship, with all hands, had been lost at sea in an Ion Storm. “We should fish close to the coast today. We are testing our luck; it has been over two weeks since the last Ion Storm.” Rachio bemoaned. He was certain the Ion Storms would soon return. Bad enough to be storm caught in sight of land. The outer reef was a two-hour sail, with none of the coves or small islands that dotted the coast, which could be used for shelter in case he was right. Ormal called an end to the discussion. He ordered Hazan and Rachio to hoist the main sail as the Lady Mia was coming out of the harbor; Ormal wanted to be ready; so the first offshore wind would fill the sails. * * * Lemosk, Jarzen’s oldest brother, came upon a scene of great confusion and excitement when he arrived at the village herd pens around mid-morning; though none of the excitement was centered on the upcoming afternoon auction. Two different groups of excited beast herders were telling and retelling their story of lights in the late night sky. They were certain Elapsis would soon be visited again by the friendly off-worlders in their space ships. The off-worlders last visit had been a quarter season ago, and everyone remembered the trading. They were terrible traders; however, their trade goods were of excellent quality and eagerly traded for. Ormal had said it had seemed more like stealing than trading, as the off-worlders gave much greater value in every trade than they received. Lemosk was devastated; he had spent the past five seasons perfecting the selective breeding of his all-purpose ranch mount---a cross between a large and powerful draft animal and the leaner, long-legged, quicker, much more surefooted mounts---the hill people used to round up their herds. This new breed could do both tasks all day without tiring. Lemosk’s frustration grew as all anyone wanted to discuss was whether the off-worlders would return. Lemosk was certain his new breed would be very popular if he could get anyone to come to his assigned area of the auction barn to try out the beasts. Lemosk had invested a lot of time and many credits into the development of, to his way of thinking, an exciting new breed. With twelve mares and two stallions still at home; Lemosk was counting heavily on selling the twenty-one mares and seven stallions he had brought to auction. Ormal had been supportive of the time and money Lemosk had put into his breeding program. With a good price for his animals and the complete sale of all the beasts he had brought to auction, Lemosk could pay the two-day workers who’d helped him and still show a substantial profit. All but overwhelmed; Lemosk gave in to a sense of complete failure as the hour for the start of the auction approached, and in spite of his best efforts, he had not been able to interest anyone into even looking at his new breed. The family farm could stand the loss, as the farm itself was very profitable. The soil in the Tadel’s valley yielded the best harvests in both quality and quantity of any crop planted, ensuring that the Tadels’ produce always brought the best price. Rachio’s six-year-old orange-fruit orchard was producing larger crops every year as the trees matured. The orchard alone would have made any family farm profitable, as the popular fruit and its juice were in demand. Even Hazen, after only three seasons, was beginning to show a profit with his special project crop: a fibrous bloom from a plant thought only to grow in the warmer climate of the southern continent of Gelon. The fibrous bloom was highly sought after. It was spun into a strong, yet soft thread that could be woven into a cloth with many uses, from clothing to carpets. Ormal, carrying on the long-held Tadel family tradition, required each of his sons on their twenty-first birthday to choose a special project that would enhance the family farm or fishing business. Lemosk, the oldest son and the first to begin a special project, had yet to benefit the family business, while both his younger brothers’ projects were actively increasing the family’s wealth. * * * Aadon Quzarian, Fleet Admiral of the Tar-Que invasion fleet of Elapsis, had called the final meeting of his fifteen warship ship captains and the ten generals who were to command the ground assault. “This will be an invasion like no other. In some respects more difficult than a typical invasion,” warned Quzarian. “We must capture the population, their towns, fishing villages, farms, and ranches with minimal destruction of property or people.” Rising to his feet, Admiral Quzarian continued, “What I tell you now is the Federation’s most closely guarded secret. As you are all painfully aware, our home world; Tar-Que’s atmosphere has been damaged beyond its ability to ever completely regenerate itself. Add to that the depletion of almost all natural resources, and we are desperately in need of a new home world.” “Elapsis is to be our new home world.” Pausing to add emphasis, Quzarian locked eyes with each of his commanders. “The inhabitants of Elapsis are to be a slave population. Because Elapsis will be our new home world; no weapons of mass destruction are to be used, no matter the obstacle.” The admiral paused, appearing to be lost in thought, and then picked up where he left off. “In a typical invasion, we would bomb the capitol cities and all military installations before landing our invasion forces. We would avoid centers of industry and commerce, saving them for capture. Elapsis has no government, no capitol cities and no military; the rustic towns and villages serve as the centers of commerce and provide what little social and cultural life there is. The patriarchs of the large family farms and fishing village communities are as close as Elapsis gets to any form of leadership, and that prestige devolves from the accumulation of land, animals, ships, and trading credits.” “We have identified ten major areas of commerce on four of the five major continents of Elapsis. Arriving again disguised as traders; we will simultaneously land our invasion forces in all ten of these rural centers. The invasion force will spread throughout the surrounding countryside with crate upon crate of what will appear to be trade goods; all weapons will be kept out of sight. Our troops, posing as traders; will begin good-natured trading. We will give great value in every trade, feeding natural greed, putting the locals at ease. We will stop trading at sunset, and set up camp sites, telling the Elapsons it’s our custom to never trade after dark. “At sunrise the following day, the invasion will commence. The traders will end their ruse; and round up all the citizenry. Our troops will quickly break up every family unit; the troops will separate the men from the women, everyone over the age of twelve. Children will also be separated from their family. This division of the family is critical; it is our best option for gaining peaceful and complete control of the population. Families that submit will be reunited, and failure to peacefully comply will result in the destruction of the family unit with the death of troublemakers. Examples will have to be set; however, they are to be public and kept...