Free Tomorrow's Paradise World: Colonize by Charles W. Armstrong Page A

years from the beginning of when our people started counting the years in our ancient history.
    So this means Taerg that captain Talbot started making log entries in this book in the year ninety-seven twenty-two.
    “How do you know all of this?”
    “Now that is the fascinating part. We keep track of the passing of time the same way. Look at the time display on this device strapped to the back of my hand. What do you notice?”
    “It is the same configuration as the date in the log book.”
    “That is correct. What year is this?”
    “Eleven thousand eight hundred sixty-three.”
    “Taerg, do you realize what this means?”
    “That this log entry is very old.”
    “Yes, two thousand one hundred forty-one years, to be more precise. A very long time ago indeed. I wonder why we were never taught any of this history on Homeworld. I was never taught anything concerning a great battle that took place.”
    “Possibly, for the reason that those facts would not help in the situation they found themselves in. They were colonizing a new planet.”
    “More likely they were embarrassed about being involved in the catastrophic decimation of a numerous population. The more I learn about my people, the more I am ashamed to be one of them.”
    “Victor, as I said before, you were not involved in that war. It was our ancestors that participated in that terrible battle. You want to help our people. You are a good man. I am proud to be you friend.”
    “Thank you, I greatly appreciate your friendship Taerg, but what happened was not right. How could the people in command have made such terrible decisions? How could those subservient to them just blindly follow the insane orders that they must have been given?”
    “Victor, we should not answer those questions. The ones that should, have been long dead. What we need to do is learn the lesson that they did not. I would say that Captain Talbot learned that lesson and used his wisdom to help our ancestors here to become a better people.”
    The rest of the week was spent reading a good portion of the earliest historical records. All penned by Captain Talbot. For the most part, they recorded his efforts and those who struggled with him in organizing the people. The people were completely in the dark technologically. They previously had handheld devices that they could individually learn from. The children relied on these for education and entertainment. Some of the weapons that were used in the great conflict completely disabled all of these. Rendered totally useless, they were simply paper weights.
    It was agreed by this first council that they would temporarily abandon the pursuit of technology. Their main purpose was to concentrate on the recovery of the people and their world. Captain Talbot specifically stressed to them that they would eventually require this technology again, when their world became filled with inhabitants. The people would be entirely ignorant of technology by then. So, all the records of their previous advancements would have to be preserved. They collected all the manuals, other scientific books, with schematics that were records of their progress up to that point. It was decided that they would store them in the Chamber of the Past . They were still there, on shelves along one of the walls in the launch bay they described fittingly as the Chamber of the Past .
    Victor and Taerg also looked at the chamber more closely. There was a small room off to the side with one bed in it. The bedding fell apart in Taerg’s hands, for it had deteriorated over the passing of many centuries. It was probably Captain Talbot’s bed initially. Maybe he was assigned to this particular base. Perhaps this base was unknown to the Kastat rebels and this is why he survived the great conflict along with his ship. One end of the chamber had a huge set of doors. There was a blue button and a yellow button on a box beside it. Taerg decided to try the blue button. He smiled as the doors