The woman at the table, dressed in the turquoise smock of a United Systems' science technician looked up from a digital notepad of streaming numbers. "That's one of the wonders of Geralt. The planet's soil will maintain all the essential nutrients needed when we'll reintroduce new crops. It's really amazing how similar the ecology of that planet is to our own world. Those settlers dropped such an opportunity."
General Aldridge grunted. "Don't feel sorry for them, Ms. Kelso. That planet's treasure is all the more reason we can't afford to allow any of those settlers to remain on the globe after they've completed their construction contracts. They would've done far more damage to that planet in the long run than the blight itself if we'd given them the chance to remain."
Ms. Kelso flushed in embarrassment. "Forgive me if I gave the indication I felt sorry for those followers of Zeb at all."
"Understood," smiled Ambassador Kile, "but how long will we need to wait before we introduce new colonists to the planet?"
Ms. Kelso's fingers tapped along her notebook, and the hovering hologram turned from orange to green. "This starliner holds an ample supply of battery power to burn all the native grasslands below to ash. We'll take care to preserve the spaceports and the most vital of structures constructed by the Zeb crews, but we'll burn off everything else to be safe that we've vaporized any lingering spores and blossoms. We'll refrain from using anything out of the nuclear arsenal so that we we’ll not have to go through the lengthy and costly protocols of radiation cleansing."
General Aldridge's eyes glimmered as he watched so much green spread across the holographic globe. "Excellent tactic. No need to spend funds when we don't need to. So how long again until you believe we can return to planting?"
"My team considers five years a conservative estimation," answered Ms. Kelso. "That will give the ground some time to recover. We anticipate our burn will even help fertilize the soil in preparation for new seed. And that time window will also give us the opportunity to deal with any blight blossoms that might show themselves after the burn."
"Excellent," nodded General Aldridge.
Ambassador Kile leaned back into his leather chair. "We'll feel little blowback from the Zeb community. We've already located a new planet waiting for another Zeb construction crew. They won't find the new planet as hospitable. It's a real chunk of ice for most of its long year. But the important thing is that the Zeb folks will think they're once again slipping out from the United Systems' chains."
"Of course," replied the General Aldridge. "The students of Zeb cannot organize effectively enough to think of presenting a case to the interplanetary courts. They despise the courts anyway. Besides, they'll soon enough forget about what happened to their brothers and sisters on Geralt. Zeb's children will have a thousand new conspiracies to believe come tomorrow, but they'll never find one behind which they can rally."
"They could've possessed such a beautiful world," remarked Ms. Kelso. "All they had to do was accept a vaccination. The blossoms would not have spread if they simply allowed their children to receive such a simple medicine."
Ambassador Kile shook his head. "It probably only took a single holdout."
Ms. Kelso startled her company with a sigh. "It's still a shame about Dr. Rhodes. I worked with him on the vaccine. He was an exceptional scientist. The United Systems will miss him."
General Aldridge grinned. "He was a very brave man for trying those ignorant followers of Zeb. We've minted a new medal in his honor, and we'll have a fine ceremony in his memory."
* * * * *
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About the Writer
Brian S. Wheeler calls Hillsboro, Illinois home, a town of roughly 6,000 in the middle of the flatland. He grew up in Carlyle, Illinois, a community less than an hour away from Hillsboro, where he spent a good amount of his childhood playing wiffle ball and tinkering on his computer. The rural Midwest inspires much of Brian's work, and he hopes any connections readers might make between his fiction and the places and people he has had the pleasure to know are positive.
Brian earned a degree in English from Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois. He has taught high school English and courses in composition and creative writing. Imagination has been one of Brian's steadfast companions since childhood, and he dreams of creating worlds filled with inspiration and characters touched by magic.
When not writing, Brian does his best to keep organized, to get a little exercise, or to try to train good German Shepherd dogs. He remains an avid reader. More information regarding Brian S. Wheeler, his novels, and his short stories can be found by visiting his website at www.flatlandfiction.com.
Take a brave, first step onto the flatland!
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Free Stories
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Legacy of the Chain
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Marblefish
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Given to Glass
Goodman Asher has marred his face to show humility. He has sewn shut his mouth. He has broken his nose and cut notches into his ears. Such hurts reward him by summoning a Fay Regent to his mirror. Goodman Asher smiles, for it is rumored that treasure follows the Regent. Only, Goodman Asher misreads the Regent's intention, and Asher's sewn mouth cannot correct the terrible misunderstanding.
The Beckford Bottom Beast
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Stars of the Shoemaker
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Science Fiction
Firedrop Garnish
The crimson blossoms of the alien firedrop flower pull mankind into the stars. Though the firedrop offers no taste nor nutritional value, there is little humanity would not sacrifice to serve the firedrop upon a household's finest china. Space knows a thousand ways to kill those who dare float amid the stars, and yet the simple pulse and glow of an alien weed make all the dangers worthwhile.
Jimmy Jack and the Smartman
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Starlight, Starbright
The archivist Un'Yhe has honored the strangers throughout his long lifetime. The strangers have smiled at every relic of the broods' homeworld Un'Yhe has brought before them. Un'Yhe's care continues to expand the museum built upon the strangers' crashed ark, until one day the strangers unfold the homeworld's bright sky to reveal a sparkling treasure more glorious than even Un'Yhe's museum houses.
Patriots of Griffin XIII
The followers of Griffin have built their thirteenth colony in record time. The United Systems rewards the effort by placing the governance of Griffin XIII into the hands of the colonists. For the thirteenth time, the followers of Zeb may live in true freedom. Only none of the twelve previous colonies named Griffin remain, and the ultimate danger resides in the colonists themselves.
Empty Urns Launched Into Stars
Paul Seton and Marshall Lincoln are unique dealers in the Singularity. With a little wealth and a lot of faith, clients in Paul and Marshall's office may circumvent death by painlessly uploading their souls into the machine. Paul and Marshall's freedom and sanity are thrown into jeopardy when a tycoon's ambition to ride the Singularity to the stars threatens to expose the Singularity's secrets.
Butcher, Baker and Replicant Maker
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Meek in the Fields
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Mudder Stew
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Plastic Tulips
The town of Portis doesn't fault Sophie Carter for gunning down Samantha Tosh in the local grocery store. Knowing that a copy of a younger, more beautiful you walked the streets around your home would drive anyone to murder. Nor was Samantha a person. She was only a synthetic, and Franklin Tosh should've known better than to think a clone could substitute for a human wife.
Fantasy
Kennel, Kingdom and Crown
Gareth harbors no desire to wear the heavy Stonebrook crown. But a brother's murder wrenches Gareth from his cherished dog field and sets him upon the keep's throne. Gareth has spent his years in the training of war dogs, and he knows little about ruling a kingdom. Somehow, Gareth's loyal dogs will have to be enough as he faces the monsters a necromancer cloaks in the fog.
Shadow Weapons of Doom
The Khy'Meir tribes posses few weapons with which to combat the Alhambran Empire. The tribes cannot match the empire's swords, nor do they have the stones with which to build walls. The tribes' only weapon is fear, wielded by their shadows infiltrating the enemy's homeland. But the tribes underestimate how deeply their fear cuts and realize too late the doom their shadows help summon.
A Cruel and Burning Ice
Markus Kohl's aching body struggles to attend to his duties as the kingdom's lowly tinker. Though his neighbors rely upon the tinker to keep the mechanisms of their livelihoods in working order, few in the kingdom appreciate Markus's effort. Regardless, Markus satisfies his king's newest request with a creation that will remind everyone of the debts owed to the humble tinker.
Glass Desires
Fay appears at the corner of Fifth and Water whenever Adam suffers a recurrence of cancer. Her silver hair and spinning halos comfort Adam during his deepest suffering. Together, Adam and Fay visit fantastic worlds twirling in the snows of magical, glass globes. Adam knows he and Fay would be happy, if only Fay could see how her beloved Regent so cruelly toys with her sprite heart.
The Llungruel and the Lom
Llungruel linger in the lom fields around the village. The llungruel is a feared lizard, whose bite brings ravaging fever that drives the mind wild. Malek and Elloch hate the creature, but they must bear the poisonous lizard to grow a sustaining harvest. But after the llungruel kills a brother, Malek and Elloch vow to destroy the lizard, and so discover secrets more bitter than the choking lom.
Horror & Ghost Story
Depth of Field
Owen Masters doesn't like the community of Flat Knob, and the community doesn't like him. No matter his efforts or intention, Flat Knob has despised Owen since he arrived to teach at the county school. A camera Owen purchases at the Turner estate auction, however, has a strange knack for capturing the dark held within the heart. Through that camera's lens, Owen will claim what is rightly deserved.
Risen for a Tower
Cedrick Pyle's tower stretches high to stand as a monument to the mogul's dominion over time. But when the wind blows cold, the desperate and the lonely trespass to find shelter upon Mr. Pyle's estate. Cedrick steadies himself for battle, for he suspects his tower and the poor surrounding it will attract the desire of his nemesis named Turner. And Cedrick knows monsters always follow that man.
Guarded Keepsakes
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Opal, Is That You?
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Mary, in Need of Belle
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A Voice That Summons Monsters
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A Handicap of Shades
Lyle Davenport golfs for memories instead of birdies. The old course's clubhouse has vanished. His arms and back turn too stiff for a graceful swing, and Lyle realizes more tee drives arc behind him than fly in front of him. Still, Lyle keeps to his weekly rounds. He shares tee-times with ghosts, and Lyle would never traverse the narrow fairways of his memory from the comfort of a cart.