01 psykokow
Exploration Date
'Exploration is merely the deep examination of the empty space between interesting stuff.
Once you find the stuff the exploration is over, so then its back to looking in the big empty dull stuff trying to find that something interesting to stop looking for once you find it.'
The Student scratched his head..'So Exploration isn't the finding then?'
'Hell no!', exclaimed the tutor... 'you can spend your whole life exploring and not finding anything..the exploring is the bit inbetween'
The Student sat silently for a few minutes and then got up and walked out of the classroom never to return.
02 Darkoba
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The Oriental young man stepped out the hatch of the mining ship.
He'd finished the 5 year contract mining "Pl", the naturally occurring isotope of plutonium, discovered in the Darkin system.
All he wanted now was a short stopover on the station to recuperate, then a ship home to Sol. No more digging ore for him, he was financially secure for life.
He approached the station's hotel check-in desk.
"Good day,sir. How long are you staying?"
"Oh, a few days, then I'm back to Earth."
"To work?"
"No."
"What do you do?"
The man grinned. "I'm an ex-pl-ore Asian"
03 psykokow
The Rough Sale
She grabbed Franks rough miners hands and stared deeply into his eyes.
'You see Frank, its all about the skin, its the body's only protection against infection and from all your juicy stuff falling out... so its Uber important to keep it in the best condition possible'
She smiled..
'Moisturise moisturise moisturise..' she ran her finger along Franks deep grooves 'Gee'z have you never applied cremes? Or at least some essential oils??'
Frank Scowled... 'Aright enuff of dat guff, we'z need to fix the ship now? Afore it crash's in dat sun''
'I'm sorry, Im an Ex Pore Lotion saleswoman..'
04 Bikky
Planet Leesti Officer
‘So old timer what did you do as a PLO, I bet there was plenty of action seen?’
‘Planet Leesti had some tough times back then, believe it or not, I hardly had any cockpit time.’
‘An officer getting no cockpit time? You’re kidding me?’
‘Not in the slightest, as an officer in charge of doling out the supplies while the famine was in full swing. It wasn’t pretty, having to tell someone with starving kids, this meagre package was their rations. But due to my work more survived than would have.’
‘And now?’
‘I’m an EX PLO in RATIONing’
05 psykokow
New Born
Florence came from an ancient family of florence's, they had spend centuries exploring the galaxies looking for new colonisable planets to make part of their little empire and every woman was called Florence after the great mother.
Many years they had continued this practice unhindered and relatively uncontested.
This time they bumped into a new creature, humanoid in shape with an orange space craft... they called it an Asbo Sidewinder... they spoke funny, but they looked cute. A number of years past on this colony and things had changed. Baby fozza was born.. a member of the Ex Flo Nation.
06 psykokow
De-forrestation
He patiently waited for the sharpened tools to float past him for inspection, his job was to watch for imperfections, misshaped heads or loose fitting handles..
An essential job to make sure that the lumberjacks clearing the forest had access to suitable hard wearing tools and to avoid the accidents from the past.
Using river systems to transport the wood, tools and even food had improved the massive area the whole team could cover and kept fuel costs for transportation low.
His radio burst into life 'Tools arriving with you in five minutes'
he replied' Roger Axe flow station out'
07 Gavthomas
In too deep
Undisrupted, numbing, crushing loneliness…the curse of the explorer. And few suffered it more than Cmdr Tregor Stryder, hellbent on finding something… something. Something lucrative enough to free him from this non-existence, watching scanners, chasing feelings, pointing towards the dark void. Small mining and information gathering opportunities existed for those willing to do such work for modest returns. Stryder had been doing this for too long and needed to land the big fish that would allow him to go home. The further he went the more despair he felt and the harder it was to turn around. Just a bit further…
08 psykokow
High Rating Indeed
The explosion's glow lit his face as he watched the chaos from the safety of his cockpit. He typed a number into his console.
Another one, the heat from this blast causing his eyebrows to curl and his eyes to screw closed...
He typed a higher number into his console.
The third explosion rocked the ship, singed off his eyebrows and burnt the skin on his forehead..
He typed the highest number into his console..
The radio blurted 'Well thanks for the feedback commander... its been very useful, do you enjoy your new job?
'As an explode rater? Love it'
09 Bikky
losing it
‘What’ll ya have?’
‘A quick Gin thanks.’
‘Where ya bound?’
‘Anywhere, off explorin’, like the quiet, time to myself. Been in station couple o hours now for repairs and stars are callin’.’
‘Couple of hours? You must like the peace.’
The wall eyed man gulps his drink and leaves.
Stars here I come, as he lovingly caresses his pictures: Marco Polo; Francis Drake and others.
I’ll be famous one day for some big discovery
Nine years later:
'Wibble wibble I’m a teapot, Ooh shiny thing in front, my it’s hot in here, lets cool down on that bright shiny pla……'
10 Darren Grey
The Breath of Stars
I stopped breathing. I’d never seen a tertiary system before, and its beauty blew me away.
The red and orange giants hung in the background like majestic sentinels, but closer was the gentle white dwarf. It was nestled amongst a violet and ochre nebula – what was once its outer layers, now shed unto space to lay the seeds of future stars. The nebula swirled like a soft blanket, weaving betwixt the stars, refracting their light in a thousand scintillating hues.
Every explorer dreamed of moments like this. I was overwhelmed.
“WARNING: pilot lifesigns fading.”
Oh! Yes. Must remember to breathe...
11 The Lone Gunman
Beyond the Threshold
So close now, several hundred million years of Human space travel had led them here
Human? No perhaps not, the species had changed many times
The Androgynous beings connected physically with the ship, at the same time
Fluctuation state normal, “good” this was felt not spoken, words had died long ago, as had any recognition of their ancestors
Crossing the threshold from dark space into shades of grey, now there is only White light
“Time zero" complete!
They Grimaced, once masters of everything, now they were humbled
Gazing back at them, the Pot man turned "we have visitors for tea!"
12 Phoenix_Dfire
Work it out.
The Sanctimonious shuddered as she emerged from hyperspace. Davie looked up from the scanner.
“Why are we here?” he grumbled.
“Because nobody’s been here before.” replied Mac.
“But why?”
“I hired you as co-pilot on an Asp Explorer, I though the ship type might give you a clue?” retorted Mac. “Anyway, just look!”
Davie looked out the viewport. Four dwarf stars held in gravity’s grasp, circling each other as if stuck in a slow elegant waltz. They had been dancing together for millions of years and will dance for millions more.
All Davie could say was “Whoa!”
