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THE RETURN TRIP – Episode 247

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THE RETURN TRIP – Episode 247

…And though he will never admit it, Ekcello inwardly welcomes the challenge of hosting two more of those wacky Earthlings…

The whole planet, a planet that is a moon of another planet which is a dwarf sister star, is singing with uncharacteristic giddiness.

For Ekcello, the perennial leader of the High Counsel, this widespread behavior is disconcerting. He hearkens back to a time, way back, to the times when the mother planet was a thriving world. Things were simple and carefree, more of a stoic-free zone, where logic was not the defining methodology. But when they were forced to flee that global geophysical tumult and move their collective to the Moon Eridanus, did the present inhabitants of Eridanus lose their thirst for space travel and abandon memories of unfettered joy.

Upon their arrival, Sampson, Celeste, and Deimostra tickled the baser instincts of the average planetary citizen to get the everlasting fog a’swirling. The approach of the brothers McKinney has induced the 3 I’s of quantifiable excitement, without them having yet set foot in the Central Tower.

TowersInstinct

Klingon Prison Planet V1 by imaximus

And though he will never admit it, Ekcello inwardly welcomes the challenge of hosting two more of those wacky Earthlings. They had come such a long way from the sun-god worshiping, pyramid building, sphinx-ters that the orbiters of Epsilon Eridani had encountered in a millennia long past.

Similarly his relationship with that Sammy Mac guy, something like finding out you fathered a child with a Klingon Prison Planet guard, has blossomed into genuine affection. Just don’t tell that to Sampson… that Ekcello admitted to anything of the sort.

An example of the growing bond between EarthMan and Eridanian surfaces when the latter relinquishes control of the Spaceship Expository to the former. He may not understand the need to keep busy {not just ponder the meaning of life}, like a parent handing the reigns of the family business, so has he to Sam, a trusted child.

THE RETURN TRIP

Family Business by Peter E Malbrough

Episode 247

page 222

THE RETURN TRIP – Episode 219

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THE RETURN TRIP – Episode 219

…back 7 years, to that first day, the initial encounter when the McKinneys stepped off NEWFOUNDLANDER, will not be forgotten by Earthling or Eridanian alike…

First Contact

… that first day, the initial encounter will not be forgotten by McKinney or Eridanian alike. Imagine what was going through Ekcello’s formidable mind, when he and their manner of historical society expect to inspect a spacecraft, which has been gone for thousands of years, only to find alien Earthlings aboard.

They feel the accompanying gall of being taken by surprise. That they could not focus their telepathic powers on one of their own products clipping along at twice the speed-of-light, sticks in their craw, if they have one. Or did they simply forget to check? They are not a mindless bunch.

And by any stretch of their boundless imagination could they have guessed that anything other than an automated system, not {Celeste} a live female Earthling, was behind the curiously engrossing music they had been interacting with for a month leading up to this day.

A grouping of four male and one female Eridanians (not NEWFOUNDLIANS – the McKinney label), clad in long, whiter than white, robes of varying design, moving in such a flowing manner that one cannot detect the action of bodily motion, have come upon this historical treasure. Their mouths were not moving, but there was obvious interaction among them; positive and negative head movements, extended arms and pointing fingers were all signs of Eridanian back & forth.

A scientific team, marked by the unique instruments they were carrying, preceded Ekcello’s group and their hectic-hands-on approach.

Now the Eridanians are nobody’s fool, well aware of their ship’s (Explorer not NEWFOUNDLANDER – the McKinney label) hardship and AWOL status, though they were not versed as to why the crew had perished instantaneously, back in the day of cumbersome space travel. Virtual immortality has since been achieved in the intervening four millennia, and that outside influences can disrupt life, is foreign to them.

THE RETURN TRIP

Episode 219

page 198

The NULL Solution = Episode 103

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The NULL Solution = Episode 103

…Xat has made himself a shadow-world, just on the other side of the next dimension…

Portal To Another Dimension by techngame

#What are you doing in my world# It seems that Xat has made himself a shadow-world, just on the other side of the next dimension. He waves his arms and suddenly there is his family… and those of his associates… frolicking in an Eridanus with crystal clear skies, no towers; without Gifted or Null.

#I require the knowledge of time-space-fold. My daughter is trapped at a distant star. We need her firstborn to bond with us#

#You and the other Gifted left us here, like a diseased colony. I have used my skills to create a parallel world. We prefer our dimension to yours#

#All we ask is the knowledge to restore Defender’s TSF technology#

#Such a fine ship she would have been#

#As it was until recently#

#To think we were vanquished to a hole in this planet because we knew too much#

#I could bring you back with us, me and The Keeper#

#Why would we give up all this# He is proud of his world, but he produces a thick pile of equations and schematics regardless. #Be aware that there is also an unquantified essence. You must summon that ancient discipline, # yet another art left behind. #We have no use for the Gifted. We live in a dimension without pain, rank or negativity. I will restore the grotto scene to you now. DO NOT RETURN#

Ekcello is unaccustomed to being told what to do.

#It would take a cosmic force to disable TSF# Xat would know.

#We suspect ⃝     is responsible#

#We know both ⃝    #

The dank cavern surrounds them once again. Xat returns to the world he created for himself.

Ekcello and the Keeper return to the surface. One problem solved, while others go unanswered.

#I wonder if Xat could solve the riddle#

#What riddle Supreme Elder? There are two O#

There are things even The Keeper has no knowledge of.

The NULL Solution =

Episode 103

page 104

A Space Family Thanksgiving = Earth/Eridanus Part 2

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A Space Family Thanksgiving = Earth/Eridanus Part 2

…They gather together to ask the Lord’s blessing…

Strictly coincidental {we think}and a day off in the Stardate of 2052.91, the Space Family contingent out on Eridanus in the Epsilon Eridani star system {as seen from their home planet in the constellation Orion’s Belt}, they too have fashioned a Thanksgiving feast – as near as possible that is.

Like many of the holidays those wacky Earthlings celebrate, it is mostly lost on the Eridanians. But doesn’t stop Sammy Mac from including his in-laws, Ekcello & Fortan {if she were not in a state of suspended animation}, in the festivities.

Much has happened in the last Earth year {yet to be reconnoitered with an Eridanian Cycle}. Though separated by 10 light years, the McKinneys have had contact with Crip and Gus, somewhere around “home” and that is ample reason to be thankful.

Ekcello should be thankful for having snapped out of his temporary funk, even though the rest of conscious Eridanus is dominated by the Null.

Skaldic the Null is invited as well & appreciates much. “Skaldy” as Sampson refers to him, has embraced each & every solitary slice of life ever since his rise to Eridanus prominence. His contribution to this day is one of the few wild animals on the planet {far Null side}, a nasty predator that when properly prepared tastes like chicken {what?}

Deimostra has thoroughly researched the Thanksgiving holiday and has made the proper connection between man-alien and the God of the Great Expanse.

“I am thankful for Ekcello for making us feel at home – to Skaldic for providing the protein for our meal…”

“Real meat!” her father interjects.

“… and for the hope of perhaps seeing Earth for the first time in person and meeting my brother Gus.”

Celeste McKinney has had firsthand experience with seeing Earthly-loved-ones by way of hyperphysical transmigration and hugs the 1st child of space for all she’s worth.

As a group, the Space Family McKinney has a laundry list of gratitude:

Deke McKinney gives the blessing, “Thank you Dear Lord for my wonderful family, our hosts here on Eridanus… and is that you inside   ⃝      ?

On a planet where music is king, they sing:

A Space Family Thanksgiving =

Earth/Eridanus Part 2

The NULL Solution = Episode 50

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The NULL Solution = Episode 50

…When your life expectancy is immaterial, keeping track of time’s passing is left to the astronomers…

Image: REUTERS/Mike Blake

Sand of Time created by Gadion

Ekcello, the Supreme Elder of the High Council on Eridanus, has certainly seen it all. From the unfortunate vulcanization of the original home world and subsequent relocation of his people, to the puzzling loss of an exploratory expedition to a neighboring star, to the unexpected arrival of the McKinneys and now, the mass neutralization of the Gifted.

The passage of time is subjective. One Eridanian cycle is an extrapolation of several factors at work in the Epsilon Eridani binary star cluster. On the planet of the McKinneys, they keep time by its revolutions, whereas here, a cycle is numbered when the dominant of the two stars appears on the Gifted side of the planet. When your life expectancy is immaterial, keeping track of time’s passing is left to the astronomers. It is not a matter of concern.

It has been several cycles since the collective cessation in Eridanian function. Ekcello is aware of the reason for it. He alone is able to overcome the self-defense mechanism that causes their society to shutdown, whenever something unknown appears on the scene.

⃝    is such an occurrence. The shining orb that Skaldic had spied in wonder turns out to be the switch that extinguished the brightness of Eridanian society. Unable to grasp the scope of its being, the whole of them retreat to within, from the mystery without.

Notwithstanding, it is Ekcello’s responsibility to rise above the indefinite and map a course to go forward. ⃝    has come and gone. Whether he or anyone else fathoms its intentions is secondary to the resumption of normal activities, so he comes down out of his tower.

**Immediately a psychic connection between father and daughter is reestablished.**

“Ekcello is back among us,” Alerts Cerella to the Earthlings and Nulls, as matter-of-fact-ly as only an Eridanian can. From one mind to another, he has apprised himself of the current situation, at least as far as the Gifted go. By Cerella’s uninterrupted reality, he is taken aback. Has her human husband diluted her Giftedness? She seems to be otherwise unaffected.

The NULL Solution =

Episode 50

page 53

The NULL Solution = Episode 39

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The NULL Solution = Episode 39

…You can knock Cerella over with a single solitary puff of misty air. Not in all her upbringing had she ever had contact with the Null…

Of all the inhabitants of Eridanus, the heretofore shunted Null are nearer to humanity, in contrast to the others. With no robes, with visible legs to stand on, they are not whitely colored – rather individually so. On top of that, they are downright approachable.

Skaldic and Offingga see the Defender slide through the massive opening of the Spaceship Expository and they are there to be the official welcoming committee. They stand tall & confident in their newfound independence. Surely they would not be punished for any acts of insolence.

You can knock Cerella over with a single solitary puff of misty air. Not in all her upbringing had she ever had contact with the Null. Now, and that covers considerable Eridanian cycles, she does, not knowing where to look, how to act or what to say.

The youngest McKinney snatches the honor, “I do not believe we have been introduced; my name is Deimostra Samantha McKinney. I am pleased to make your acquaintance.”

‘What a dry fresh breath of air are these people of Earth,’ Skaldic thinks, not expecting such simplicity. “They call me Skaldic the Null and my companion is Offingga {translation: the jabberer}.” 

That spontaneous Null irony whizzes past without notice.

“How is it that we haven’t met before now? We {she points to Mom, Dad, and Deke} landed on your planet many cycles ago. Surely we should have crossed paths.”

“The Null tower is on the empty side of Eridanus.”

“There are others like you… so where are they?”

“Many more and it is best that they stay in our tower.”

“You act so different than Cerella and her father Ekcello.”

“We do not possess the ability to communicate with our minds.”

“I can teach you. If my brother can learn, certainly you can.”

“We are inferior beings in the eyes of the Gifted, unfit for interaction.”

Cerella slams the door on the increasingly uncomfortable exchange.

Image result for door slamming gif

The NULL Solution =

Episode 39

page 44

The NULL Solution = Episode 27

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The NULL Solution = Episode 27

…It appears that the Null were not affected by the light…

“It must have been nothing after all.” Sampson McKinney is confused by the confusing incoming communication.

Not so fast.

Equal to nothing, is null. Skaldic the Null is equally surprised to get a signal from one of the many gadgets currently at his disposal.

“#DEFENDER RESPONDING ERIDANUS.#, what on the Ice Moon does this mean?” He will not get help from Offingga, who knows but dribs & drabs of the Olde Language. “There must be a translator here somewhere.”

He fingers a section with similar symbols.

DEFENDER RESPONDING ERIDANUS comes in plain as day.

His Olde Language is passable. “Well I’ll be a one legged qaaf {derogatory term}! Let me see… I will speak my name: #skaldic the Null.#  Just a little off-key.–

— After a bit of a wait, the Defender’s audio jumps to life. “Cerella, this thing is lightingRelated image up like a Christmas tree.”

#skaldic the Null#

“Skaldic the Null,” she converts to Earth English.

“Sounds like a Viking warrior to me.” Yes it does.

She brushes past that obscure Sammy-ism.

“It appears that the Null were not affected by the light. I should have checked on them before we left.” The Gifted feel responsible for the Null. “I’ll explain the “Null” label later.”

Cerella, the Heiress to the High Council of Eridanus is speaking with the insignificant, suddenly not so, #who is with you?#

“Who is with you?” she repeats to keep the McKinneys in the loop. —

— #who is with you?# repeats Skaldic for his interested party.

It takes Offingga longer to process the Olde Language. She nods her head, like he needs her approval to answer. But who she is, is not as important as clarifying intent.

#we are the Null. Is there anything we can do to help you?# 

”We are the Null. Is there anything we can do to help you?” comes a singing, again, a sour note with a positive message.

Responding in a message too long to chronicle, Cerella explains where they are and why they are consorting with the Seljuk. She informs him that they will be back on Eridanus very soon, instructing Skaldic to keep the lines of communication open and not to do anything of consequence without her approval.

What she does not tell him is that Defender has been transformed into a battle cruiser thanks to the Seljuk. The concept of militarization would fall flat upon the ears of an Eridanian, Gifted or not.

Music: Lior Porat Lyrics: Rachel Arenstein & Avraham Roos

The NULL Solution =

Concepts

Episode 27

page 31

The NULL Solution = Episode 25

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The NULL Solution = Episode 25

…There must be a clue in this somewhere…

Clues – Painting by Harmen Steewyck (1612-1656)

–The 1st order of business for Skaldic is to look outward, away from the bounds of Eridanus’ clammy atmosphere. Unable to uncover details from the distance past, he senses the need to access the resources available in the Spaceflight Expository, the physical engine of this star system’s view of the Great Expanse.

During his initial glimpse out, with his naked eye, he notices a bright reflection near the old, scorched home world ⃝    . He has never seen it before, but that doesn’t mean much. Nulls have little reason to look up. Before he can get a lock on it, it is gone.

It wasn’t all that long ago that the great Eridanian explorer {not}, Sampson McKinney led his family, Cerella Heiress to the High Council and the Defender out in search of answers to the same questions. But Skaldic has no way of knowing these things, just like knowing what strange things are lurking hereabout.

He does use what is available to him there. Backtracking to the “big freeze” moment, one cycle hence, he fires up the global diary. The diary is an independent recorder of what is/has, present/past goings on for posterity’s sake. As much as the Eridanians want to pretend that they are isolated among the nebulae and black holes in their neighborhood, the warp signature of their Defender has pricked the curiosity from some parties afar.

He references the “big freeze” in the archive. He is surprised at the undistinguished nature of that specific timestem. There is nothing unusual in 2052.50, just the freezing of the Gifted.

“The High Council would not leave us in the dark,” he reasons, “not without warning us. There must be a clue in this somewhere.”

When in doubt, you slow things down for a better look, which he does. Hidden in a fraction of a second, the narrowest of elapse, is the briefest torrent of light ⃝

“That is it!”

The NULL Solution =

Episode 25

page 29

The NULL Solution = Episode 24

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The NULL Solution = Episode 24

…With the Gifted, white-cloaked & motionless, shut down like some many windup toys, the initial Null reaction is to help themselves to the things reserved for the Gifted…

Wind-up Toy Set – set of mini still life oil paintings by Marilyn Fenn

Much to Skaldic’s dismay, the only period of time resembling this one, was while Eridanian explorers were still roaming far into space. There is even a vague reference to a ship that was lost forever. Much music was composed in the spirit of grief. In a language comprised of melody and tuneage, the collective sigh of a civilization is there for all to hear… but no details, just an untold cycle gap between tragedy and enlightenment.

Just what happened during those many cycles? Nothing, that they were willing to make an accounting of.

So like bees fleeing the hive, the Null come out from their restricted tower. Most every one of them was born non-telepathic. Some were afflicted by a brain short-circuit. All are rejects.

Skaldic the Null, however, chose to be this way; no good reason, he just chooses 100% verbal. Rumors claim him to have a tin ear, which would make it hard to communicate with anyone at all, though he has managed and actually excels to this Related imagemoment.

With the Gifted, white-cloaked & motionless, shut down like some many windup toys, the initial Null reaction is to help themselves to the things reserved for the Gifted, aka personal possessions, food and hookahs. Hookahs are the strange devices the Gifted use to expand their limits.

Hookahs would not help the Null cause whatsoever.  The effects would send their minds past the edge of reality. Skaldic categorically forbids any use of said devices. Looting too is halted posthaste. There may be hell to pay if/when the Gifted revive.

He goes about the process of forming a coalition of trusted Nulls. Though acquainted with most, he counts those he can rely on, on one digit.

This situation requires equals, not peons. The majority of his kind has settled for the status quo, secure in the knowledge that they are taken care of. ‘Why should we struggle to attain anything greater?’ has been the mantra for untold cycles, going back to before the times that Skaldic is looking into.-

The NULL Solution =

Episode 24

page 28

The NULL Solution = Episode 23

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The NULL Solution = Episode 23

Chapter Three

The 64 Parsec Question

…Though Skaldic the Null is equivalent to zero by title, he is the most excellent negative of all the other zilch’s…

Superior Group & Inferior Group by luminita taranu

Maybe it is just as well that Sam & Deke McKinney do not know the goings on back at their home world #one.

Adoptive home world #two is a completely separate issue.

Equally spared and even more in the dark are the people of Eridanus. Their thought-embargo is nearly complete.

The only citizens exempt from mental paralysis are those who are mentally incapable of the Eridanian form of telepathy. As lost souls, they are even more lost, not knowing what is going down and left to fend for themselves for the first time in their immortally deficient lives…

… But even among misfits, there are leaders and so it is with Skaldic the Null. Though he is equivalent to zero by title, he is the most excellent negative of all the other zilch’s.

The others look up to him, mainly because his cube is on the top floor of the misfit tower; the erudite Eridanians call it – well, nothing aloud, but the name “Nulls” is bandied about. They all think of it as a separate colony, not to be a part of the Eridanus experience. After all, the Null are not telepathic.

But what Skaldic lacks in intuition, he makes up for with guile. He would be the elder of the misfit tower, if they were allowed a seat on the High Council. Such is the respect he has among his peers.

Now that the Gifted of Eridanus are silent, it is Skaldic that fills the leadership void. If you clothed him in white robes, you would think he was Gifted. Such a small difference at atop of his body sets him apart, but not in a beneficial way. He and the other Nulls are grossly underrated.

The first thing he does is to check the historic records, those he has access to, for any similar chronicled occurrence in the long and storied past of the Gifted… oh and those others, like him.

The NULL Solution =

Episode 23

page 27