Third Moon Rising Read online

  “We will soon provide you links to our global-archive network directly from your embassy. We ask that you honor the restrictions to not access internal government and technology data. I recognize unintentional access may occur, but I am confident you will not pass such information back to Earth. Most of this data is in restricted access files in any case and requires special access codes for entry. But if you really set out to obtain the information, I am sure you could.”

  “We will honor the restrictions,” he replied, “and we appreciate your decision to provide access to the comprehensive archive data. However, just between the two of us, it would be better if you did not install archive access in the embassy facility right away. We would like to have this convenience, but it would be better if I could advise Earth that you will provide this upon our reaching formal agreement to expand relations. This might help them come to a quick decision to approve our recommendations.”

  “And so it will be,” she said, reaching across the narrow table to touch his hands. “There is something else bothering you, Carlos, I can tell.” She looked at him inquiringly.

  Yes, there were two things. He was sterile and likely would always be. He was guilty of what they had accused the Zilans of doing by keeping the male infertility problem secret. The second concern was the apparent discrimination that had resulted in migration of mostly single and barren monogamous families to the southern zone. He decided to address the latter issue but couldn’t face addressing the former one yet.

  “There is a potential issue we recognize,” he stated awkwardly. “Your southern zone population is comprised mostly of single individuals and married couples having no children. It appears that such individuals are encouraged to move south, perhaps through discriminatory actions. Those on Earth view such discrimination very negatively. Our civilization underwent turbulent times in recent history dealing with global population discrimination issues.”

  Ceripe laughed, but in a relieved, nonoffensive way. “I can see where you might draw that conclusion. Believe me, there is very little of what you might consider negative discrimination with respect to those migrating to the southern zone.

  “The migration is driven by two factors. One is the pain felt by monogamous families that have no children after trying for considerable time. Being around other families that are producing children is a constant reminder of their perceived failure to do their part in supporting the growth and survival of our species. It is natural for them to want to live elsewhere, and the southern zone offers them many opportunities to be successful, contributing citizens in our society. They do receive preferential treatment when electing to migrate south.

  “The second factor is that considerable opportunity exists for individuals willing to work in remote locations for extended periods. They gain valuable experience, contribute to the overall welfare of society, and gain stature doing so.

  “Most single individuals return to the northern zone after two to three years. Individuals seeking opportunities in the south have a healthy mix of men and women, which often results in marriages among those working closely in remote areas. Many of these marriages result in pregnancies, and those families normally migrate back to the north relatively soon thereafter.”

  He could see the logic of the situation from the Zilan perspective, and again felt relieved. They must indeed be more open in communicating. Why had he put himself through such emotional extremes the previous day?

  She could see the understanding and relief in his face and knew they had turned another corner in their relationship. She continued, intending to completely clear the air of misunderstanding between them.

  “We did maneuver to keep you from visiting the southern zone, as you deduced. This was driven by our concern that you would learn prematurely about our infertility problem, not by any conscious effort to hide any perceived discrimination issue.”

  Her face flushed at the conclusion of this statement, for it did acknowledge an overt attempt to keep something from him. “In addition, some in our government believe our mining techniques are very advanced, and that we should hold this technology in reserve until we have consummated an exchange agreement.”

  “I appreciate your candor, Ceripe. And since we have reached this level of understanding, I hesitate to bring up another observation.”

  “Please go ahead, Carlos.”

  “We see the growing Zilan female-to-male ratio imbalance to be a serious problem as well. If not resolved, it could threaten survival and evolution of your civilization long term.”

  “We understand that,” Ceripe replied solemnly. “This imbalance has created significant social and religious problems. However, it is a slow growing problem that is manageable for now. We suspect it is related to the infertility problem. We hope that a solution will become evident once we find a cure for this problem. Again, I suspect our social mores are keeping us from finding a solution. Perhaps your medical team can help us with this.”

  “I hope so.” He smiled. “I believe that we can proceed forthrightly in working out an agreement that will be met with approval by both our governments.”

  “Do you see any problem working closely with me after last night?” she asked softly.

  He smiled, and this time he reached across the table and took her hands in his. “No. But I am sure you recognize that our relationship must be a professional one, as hard as it will be to maintain our distance personally.”

  She smiled in return. “Unfortunately I do.”

  “While we are baring our souls,” he added lightly and withdrew his hands, “maybe you can enlighten me on why your people never take notes in our meetings or carry appointment calendars and such. Our doctors seem to think all Zilans have photographic memories, that you remember all details of everything you encounter.”

  Ceripe laughed before responding. “We do have very excellent short-term memory ability, which is close to what you describe as photographic memory. In the long term, we remember only those things of higher importance over the background information or that are frequently refreshed through conscious recall. So in a way, your doctors are correct.”

  She paused, and then blushed as she said, “And those events or information that are of highest importance can be remembered vividly in every detail.”

  With that answer, Carlos excused himself and headed back to the embassy. He would have to adjust to dealing with a more emotional Ceripe. After the previous night, she was having difficulty keeping her emotions under control around him.

  Carlos briefed the team on the information provided by Ceripe, excluding the most private moments. There was a collective sigh of relief. They all knew their Zilan counterparts very well and wanted to believe the best of them. The path was clear to proceed with diplomatic plans in the near term.

  A short time later, he and Gloria were alone in his office. She was quiet as he made notes regarding what should be in the communication to Earth about the recent issues.

  “Is there anything you need to talk to me about?” she asked as he finished his notes.

  He smiled and turned his full attention to her. “Yes, there is.” He summarized the more personal aspects of his interface with Ceripe the night before and again in her office that day. Gloria was not surprised, but what he said clearly bothered her.

  “I had thought the growing fondness between you two was more on her part than yours,” she said, voice trembling. “I appreciate your honesty. It shows you believe in the strength of our relationship. But I have to admit to strong feelings about this, probably jealousy. I just don’t know. I only know I don’t want to lose what we have.”

  He rose and walked quickly around the table to embrace her. He loved this woman with all his heart, and he told her as much. He assured her he wanted to keep and strengthen their relationship, and was committed to keeping the relationship with Ceripe on a professional basis, in spite of the strong friendship bond that had evolved with her. If anything, the open discussion had brought him an
d Gloria even closer together.

  Carlos had another surprise when he addressed the Zilan infertility and declining population discoveries by message with Messier Colony and Earth representatives. They had known about the two related issues for several years before the New Horizon team awoke during the last phase of their journey. They offered no explanation as to why they’d kept this information from the team.

  Earth indicated that scientists had gone over every piece of information they could glean from data collected about Zilia in attempting to find the cause of the infertility. They had not identified any good leads, and this was causing considerable concern because they wanted to have a solution to use as a future bargaining chip with the Zilans. Earth directed Carlos to limit exchange of information with the Zilans until they found a cause and cure for the infertility problem, and finding this cure was to be a top priority.

  This response angered Carlos even more than his first exchange with Ceripe on the subject. He restrained the urge to lash out at the people on the other end of the communications link. Neither Messier nor Earth made any additional reference to the issue and simply advised Carlos to proceed with working out the final details of the exchange agreement with the Zilans. The others on the team were as astonished as Carlos at this turn of events.

  The two diplomatic teams quickly worked out guidelines for the agreement. However, they intentionally left out the specific areas in which to expand exchange of information. Instead, they favored a more general framework that left much of the day-to-day exchange in the hands of the two small teams representing Earth and Zilia respectively. Carlos strongly supported this approach, although he knew it would be more difficult to sell to those on Earth.

  He was right. Earth did not openly object to the general approach in the agreement, but directed that he was to provide details for the areas they would address first with the Zilans. Earth reserved final approval of this detailed plan and indicated it was necessary before they could begin sharing technology with the Zilans.

  The concurrence by Earth was timely, for the Holy Seven-Year Two-Moon Phase was rapidly approaching. It was essential the agreement be presented for consummation during a Primary Two-Moon Phase period, and having this presentation occur during the holy seven-year event would make it much more significant to the Zilans.

  Carlos advised Ceripe of Earth’s approval, and they set about finalizing the agreement so formal documents could be presented during the forthcoming two-moon eclipse phase. Word quickly filtered out into the general population that a major event beneficial to all Zilans would take place during the next Two-Moon Phase. Excitement and anticipation grew throughout society as the event approached.

  The Two-Moon Phase would officially start the night both moons were first visible in the night sky, albeit for a short period of joint appearance. Ceripe advised Carlos to present the formal agreement when the two moons achieved balanced positions forty-five degrees on each side of nadir, with the inner moon just reaching the halfmoon phase. This balanced alignment would take place the fifth night after start of the Holy Seven-Year Two-Moon Phase. That was the first night the Earth team would join senior Zilan leaders to view the celestial event.

  Ceripe indicated the Zilan leaders would then formally evaluate the agreement and respond when the moons fully eclipsed six nights later. This was also traditional, with the consummation and celebration of the agreement occurring at the full eclipse, the merging of the moons.

  Carlos agreed and expressed appreciation for the invitation to the ceremony. He then focused the team on completing plans for initiation of expanded information exchange and negotiation of terms for an Earth outpost split between two locations, one on and one orbiting the planet Zilia.

  It was remarkable to see the phenomenal change in Zilan attitudes as the Holy Seven-Year Two-Moon Phase approached, even though Ceripe’s staff prepared them for what to expect. The religious fervor and harmony among the various factions in society increased steadily as the natural event approached.

  It was increasingly difficult for Carlos to make progress with Ceripe in coordinating final details of the joint agreement, with her preoccupied with religious matters. Fortunately, this first announcement was straightforward, and she assured him that her people would follow through in signing and returning a copy of the agreement during the eclipse.

  Carlos became more restless and uneasy the closer the event came. Gloria shrugged this off, indicating that he was a natural born worrier. He wasn’t sure this was all there was to it. They did not need another surprise right after going through the misdirected crisis over the infertility issue.

  FOURTEEN

  THIRD MOON RISING

  The start of the two-moon eclipse phase was anticlimactic for the team after watching the fevered preparations by the Zilans. The team watched the event from the rooftop observation area of the main embassy building. The outer moon was still below the eastern horizon as the day ended and dusk settled across Zilerip. The nights were only slightly longer than the days, and the inner moon’s thin crescent could be seen low above the western horizon, having traversed its arch across the daytime sky.

  The inner moon was in its waxing crescent phase heading toward becoming a full moon in eleven days when it would eclipse with the outer moon. The two full moons would align as the planet Zilia reached its northern vernal equinox, with day and night the same duration in both hemispheres on the first day of the year. The outer moon would be closest to Zilia in its seven year orbit.

  The inner moon appeared to speed up as it completed the short arc to the western horizon as nightfall came, an optical illusion due to the close proximity of the moon to the horizon. The inner moon dipped below the western horizon in synchrony with the outer moon rising from the eastern horizon.

  The outer moon appeared to already be at its full moon phase, but Carlos knew it was almost but not quite there. It was impossible to tell with the naked eye. In the two weeks leading to the two-moon eclipse, the outer moon would advance slightly over one degree in its observed orbit.

  As night progressed, the outer moon followed an arc heading toward the same point where the inner moon had set. After several hours of watching the moon and discussing the Zilan reaction to the approaching full eclipse, the partners drifted off to their private quarters. So far, the start of the Holy Seven-Year Two-Moon Phase had not produced strong feelings one way or another in the team.

  Conversely, the start of the holy event was a deeply moving experience to the Zilans, with religious ceremonies and observations throughout the night. The next day was a holiday of worship and celebration, with few getting any sleep after their night of reverent observation. No calls came from Ceripe or her staff, and Carlos did not expect any meaningful interaction until the holy event ran its course.

  Carlos and the team focused on plans for activities once the holy event had passed and they could begin functioning under guidelines of the formal exchange agreement. He also suggested they take advantage of this time to have a vacation of sorts, and they all took his suggestion to heart, pursuing personal interests.

  As the days progressed, the inner moon rose later during the day and consequently was higher in the western sky at nightfall, effectively closing the gap with the outer moon as seen from the surface. The outer moon rose imperceptibly later each night, and the two moons moved in synchrony to the west, with the outer moon setting as dawn lightened the eastern horizon. The Zilan fervor steadily increased as the two moons moved closer to full alignment.

  The fifth day after the start of the Holy Seven-Year Two-Moon Phase, the inner moon rose from the eastern horizon near midday. It would continue its trek to a position directly overhead at nightfall, when the outer moon started rising from the eastern horizon. This set the stage for the balanced alignment later that night where the outer and inner moons would be forty-five degrees above the eastern and western horizons respectively.

  Ceripe invited the Earth team to observe the holy event that n
ight from the High Temple of Zilerip, located centrally in the city. The temple was in the form of a massive, intricate ziggurat—a temple tower of pyramid structure built in successive layers of stepped-back stages, with a domed shrine at the top.

  Carlos, Gloria, and the other partners met Starke Pelanah at the main entrance to the temple, and he escorted them up to the viewing level, the southern balcony of the ziggurat structure one level below the top. Key Zilan political and religious leaders, except for the supreme leader, were already present. They were taking seats on an elevated platform assembled on the balcony. This was clearly the prime viewing location in the city, looking to the south over all obstructions to view both moons.

  “I am surprised your leaders are not viewing the event from the top shrine level,” Carlos said.

  Gloria was close and surreptitiously poked him in the ribs with the document rolls she carried. So maybe it wasn’t the most diplomatic statement to make.

  “The top level is very sacred,” Starke said solemnly. “Normally only our high priests have access to that level. In some very rare and extraordinary religious events, others are invited to visit the shrine level.”

  Carlos wondered what such events might be, but now was not the time to ask. He didn’t want another poke in the ribs from Gloria. Starke led them to seats at the back of the viewing platform near a central aisle left open for access to the front of the balcony.

  Carlos took no umbrage when seated at the rear of the platform. It was an honor just to participate in observations from a location the Zilans sanctified, and with such a prestigious gathering of senior religious and political leaders.

  Expectations were high that the announcement of expanded relations between the two civilizations would greatly benefit both. It was clear the Zilan leader wanted to benefit from the positive public relations of having the presentation made in front of this audience.