We Are Legion (We Are Bob)

Book 5: Chapter 18: Explorations

Book 5: Chapter 18: Explorations

Icarus

July 2321

Wormhole network

We were continuing our survey of the Hub Zero systems and had just transited yet another wormhole. The system at the other end was a large one. So far, we’d identified fourteen planets, two of which were in the habitable zone. By this point, we weren’t bothering with stealth or even caution. The singular lack of any activity other than us was both reassuring and disturbing.

But there was something odd about the fourth and fifth planets, the ones in the habitable zone. The color was … well, purple-ish. That couldn’t be right.

The why became obvious, though, when we got close enough to be able to observe the fourth planet as a disk. It looked purple because it was, well, purple.

“I’ve never seen anything like that,” I said. “It’s beautiful, but what’s causing it?”

Dae looked up from the video window he’d been watching closely. “Believe it or not, it’s the plant life. Everything is purple instead of green. Here, take a look.” He swiveled the window around to show a low aerial view from a survey drone. Sure enough, all the vegetation was resplendent in various shades of purple, from a deep royal hue all the way up to something that was almost fuchsia.

“It’s a retinal-based photosynthetic system,” Dae continued. “I looked it up. It’s an alternative to chlorophyll. Supposed to be more efficient. It uses green light, so it reflects away the blue and red. Exactly the opposite of chlorophyll.”

“If it’s more efficient,” I replied, “why is this the first time we’ve ever seen it?”

“Damned if I know. Hey, maybe we can keep track if we start visiting all the planets. It could turn out that our patch of space is a statistical fluke.”

“One thing at a time, Dae. Let’s find out where everyone is first.”

“You know, you’re starting to sound like a broken record, Icky.”

“Even a broken record is right twice a day.”

“Whaaaat?”

I grinned at his confused expression. It was rare that we managed to catch each other by surprise anymore, and worth savoring when it happened.

“What’s more interesting to me,” I continued, “is whether the two planets each independently developed retinal-based biospheres or if the local civilization imported the plants as part of a colonization strategy. And possibly wiped out a native ecology in the process.”

“Hmm.” Dae cocked his head in thought. “Shall we investigate?”

“Why, yes, I do believe we shall.”

*****

The landscape had an eerie feel. Viewing it, even through a spy drone, I couldn’t help thinking of that Lovecraft story, “The Color Out of Space.” The animals that I was able to spot were likewise just a bit off. Colors, for instance, tended toward blues rather than browns. I wondered if it had anything to do with the color sensitivities of predators. Possibly, brown and green might look similar if you only had two color receptors, and maybe blue and purple would be similar. There was no immediate way to test this, so I shelved it for another time.

But parallel evolution stayed true. No land octopi or wheel-based locomotive systems. This made me feel unaccountably better, as if my worldview had been under threat.

The former inhabitants, though, had not been humanoid. Doors were round and retracted into the wall like pocket doors—and not as an exception, but almost always. Only openings apparently intended for loading and unloading vehicles were rectangular, and those tended to have roll-up doors.

Buildings were low, squat, and only a single story. A SUDDAR scan revealed that most of them had multiple underground levels, and in fact, even the first floor tended to be a few steps down from ground level.

No statues were in evidence, so we couldn’t get an idea of the inhabitants’ physique. One of the spy drones did come upon a picture on some kind of kiosk. It depicted a being shaped something like a hamburger bun, but with multiple legs and arms. And presumably eyes, although they could have been sesame seeds for all I knew. We couldn’t decide if it was one of the intelligent inhabitants or an ad for a snack food.

I spent a day trying to find other depictions but came up empty-handed. Finally, Dae chided me about my seeming obsession. “We can’t go down this rabbit hole, Icky. We’ve already discussed this. We could spend literal centuries exploring the whole empire.”

“Yeah, you’re right. Get the basics, then get the Bobiverse involved. Let’s get back to work.”

But as we flew back toward the gate, I kept my telescope centered on the closer planet, trying for one last detail.