DDS:CB20 Alone
April 15, 2222: Mack Reed here. I'm writing this journal because in about 24 years someone is expected to get here, and I want them to know what happened in case I'm not around to tell them.
A year ago (April 11, 2221) 24 of us landed here, on a planet we named "Terra 2." It is in that magnificent "Goldilocks zone," just the right distance from its sun. We were sent here to prepare the planet for settlement by 50,000 people from Earth.
We were only one of the missions. Similar ones were sent to 78 different planets that tests had shown they could support human life.
Earth was dying fast, was in fact all but dead. The slightly less than 4 million still able to stay alive knew their time was rapidly ending. Technology was such that they could send ships first to explore, seeking habitable planets, and later to send people like me to prepare the planets for occupation.
We came with all kinds of tools, machines, technologies... to do our job. And we had incredibly sophisticated 3D printers that could quickly print what we needed, drawing the materials and energy they needed from the planet itself.
So twelve couples, six of them straight, four lesbian, and two gay, came here and went to work. We were all young, between 23 and 31. I'm 28, or will be on May 1. We stayed on the ship, on the ground, and first built a shelter for all of us to stay in. It was fairly elaborate. We had been confined in a cramped ship for the 17 months of our journey and we wanted some room. Having said that, we couldn't build something with huge living spaces. Our living units, all twelve of them were 15 x 12, not small, but not large either. But we had two huge spaces which held holochambers. We spent most of our free time in those. They came equipped with every sort of scenario and situation imaginable and were great. We all loved them.
So things were moving along. We were out working on this very temperate planet every day. Oh, the planet has mild temperatures year round. Never stiflingly hot, never bitterly cold. Moderate winds, and when the rains come, which they do often enough to keep everything growing and healthy, they are gentle to moderate in nature.
This planet is a paradise as far as climate is concerned.
Our rule was that every day 23 people went out to work and one stayed behind to "mind the shelter," prepare the evening meal, and have a day of relaxation. We didn't work ourselves to death. The machines did most of the land clearance, shelter building, and other things needed, but there was plenty to do at the work site. We stayed out for ten hours each day.
One day off out of every 24 seems like it wouldn't be enough, but it was. We were a disciplined crew, thrived on work, and had no complaints about the schedule. This went on from the time our shelter was completed until two weeks ago Thursday, my day to stay at the shelter.
The work day was 8 am to 6 pm. At 7:00 they had not returned. At 8 and at 9 and at 10, not back. I couldn't really go out and check at that point. There were wild animals that roamed at night and I could easily become dinner for one of them.
The next morning, when they still hadn't returned, I went looking. I was armed and I was careful. When I got to the worksite I could tell from a distance that disaster had struck.
A building had collapsed. I rushed to get closer.
I spent the day exploring the wreckage and from what I saw it seemed extremely unlikely that anyone had survived.
In the following days, working very carefully, I used equipment to try to unearth anyone who might have been buried alive. I eventually found 17 bodies. I never found the other six, or at least enough of them to identify them as the missing people. My wife, Allison was one whose body I found.
After 10 days I realized further search was futile and I gave up.
That was three days ago.
So for the past three days I have been trying to figure out how I am going to spend the time until the settlement ship gets here in 2246. I will be alone for 24 years.
There is no way to communicate with the ship that is heading this way, and no way for me to leave the planet. Our ship cannot take off from the planet.
I'm going to work for 10 hours, but only six days a week. I will never come close to having the place ready for 50,000 people, but there's really nothing I can do about that. They'll need to take it from where it is when they get here. I will concentrate on living spaces only and leave all of the rest.
In my off time I will rest, prepare my meals, and spend time in the holo entertaining myself. I will climb hills and hike on rough trails or no trails. I will spend time on the ocean, I will do a little painting; I'm sure I will find other interests. The holo offers nearly endless possibilities. I will also coach a college basketball team. 7 of us did that before the tragedy and it was really a lot of fun. There will certainly be a sad aspect to it now that I am on my own, but it's something i enjoy enough to stay with. I will need to keep busy. This isolation will surely test me severely.