5000 years
She had been warned. On first glance, this species seemed like another average task: anthropoid, medium-brained, clueless about any realm beyond the third dimension.
She observed them from the camp her ancestors had put up on Mars aeons ago, when the first earthlings had reached the level of rudimentary writing. That had been 5000 years ago.
By now, the earthlings were roaming the stage of basic technology. Fascinated by mechanics and speed, they had managed to burn 67 percent of their planet's resources, and were still eager to go faster. Every now and then, they built giant telescopes, then ended up frustrated as neither aliens nor antimatter could be found, despite all their hopes and their piles of astrophysical equations.
Parallel to observing them, she read through the reports of those who had gone on ground missions before her. Many hadn't returned. Some had turned to humans, some had died as martyrs, some still were there, trying to prevent the worst.
Weirdlings, she had named them secretly. Now, while preparing for her own ground mission, she had to confess that she was both appalled and fascinated by them, by their overly occupation with dialects, frontiers, and hair lengths; their hopeless love for the nature they slowly killed; their longing to travel the world and the universe, to find peace, and recreate paradise, somehow.
“Don't fall for them,” her commander reminded her again before she was beamed down.
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Author's Note
Inspired by the upcoming flash theme "Space Camp" - and by the fictionaut "Oil" group.
Other stories by Dorothee Lang
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Wow Dorothee, you touch on hope and despair, idealism, natural instinct, and so many other aspects of human nature here. And, in a past/present/future view of it all. So well done!
Susan - thanks for your comment. this started as a fun alien story but then i got hooked by the energy theme, which also connect to the "Oil" group, and started to look up essays on energy resources - which gave it this different, larger spin.
Yes to this piece, Dorothee. Big like: "Weirdlings, she had named them secretly. Now, while preparing for her own ground mission, she had to confess that she was both appalled and fascinated by them, by their overly occupation with dialects, frontiers, and hair lengths; their hopeless love for the nature they slowly killed; their longing to travel the world and the universe, to find peace, and recreate paradise, somehow."
This is very cool...like Sam above I like this:
"by their overly occupation with dialects, frontiers, and hair lengths; their hopeless love for the nature they slowly killed; their longing to travel the world and the universe, to find peace, and recreate paradise, somehow."
Sam, Jules ~ glad you picked this line. it first was more cynic, but then, there is something moving about all our hopes and dreams down here.
I agree with Sam and Jules on my fave line, but I also love the point of view and "anthropoid, medium-brained, clueless..." Great description.
“Don't fall for them,” her commander reminded her again before she was beamed down.
Wow, this really knocked me. Weirdlings is right! I love what you did with this story, and that ending was a whallop. And, sad. Infinitely sad...
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This is a stunning one. I loved the ending.
Kim, Susan, Beate ~ thanks. yes, sad. but also with this ping of hope.
looking through the "Oil" stories yesterday, i realized that this story also was sparked by Susan Gibb's "The Man of the Marshes", which for me had this touch of looking at the world from a different point / lifeform: http://bit.ly/9E8Sp6
Wish I could give this another fave today! But I guess that's not possible.