Existence Opens

An Animal SF story by angerbda

From wonder into wonder
Existence opens
Lao Tzu

Glowing eyes were following the majestic beast's every movements. Slowly, the tall, four hoofed-legged advanced without giving a glance at those eyes.

The corridors journeyed through a series of cages and aquarium where the most astounded animals could be found. Here, a giant water snake coiled around a transparent clam. There, a small, chubby blue fox with twinkle in the eyes.

As he walked along the corridors, most of the beings behind the glass observed with anticipation. Some of them were seldom more than wild animals, hunted on one planet or another. These tended to shy in shadowed corners, weary of anyone or anything. Some others showed intelligence and interest.

"Welcome to the Barn!"

The corridors opened to a central place. The automated voice of the broadcast welcome message remained ignored by the beast. Immobile, he surveyed the main exhibition cages.

"Welcome! Welcome my friend!" Affable, another four hoofed-legged beast, shorter, could not be ignored.

"Chiron, my friend, it is a pleasure to have you back, so soon after your last acquisition." The shop keeper's pleasant greeting hold a questioning undertone. This customer had been visiting more frequently in the recent past period. No amount of questioning or pestering had provided any answer to the main question the owner of the Barn had, though. What? What was Chiron doing with all the pets he had purchased so far, and continued to purchase?

"I will take this one."
Observing the series of large cages, Chiron stood. His eyes grazed the many groups of strange, exotic beings, to lock on a specific corner. There, three small, four-legged animals quietly hid in the shadow.

"I still don't understand why you like them so much, Chiron," the shop keeper, arms crossed on his chest, shook his head.

"I know what you will say," the beast's eyes twinkled, "'they are stupid.. and what could they do with only four legs and no arms or hands?' This is what you ask me every time. I like them, that's all. I think they have a lot of potential."

The frustrated shop keeper did not try to argue. It was a fact that every time Chiron came to his shop, he would always chose the same pets. He could not be enticed with a charming snake lady or a fiery bird of fire. The Start Lord knows those where among the best species to make great pet. One would be playful and easy to maintain while the other had a long lifespan to boost.

No, Chiron always chose those limited primates that spend there time lazing around when not reproducing.

"What are you doing with them anyway? Do you eat them, hunt them? You come so often to get new ones that I wonder..." The shop keeper frustration was reaching a culminating point.

"Once I purchase them, it is no more your problem. So let it go, please."

Handing a fat pouch to the grumpy beast, Chiron signified him to take his new pet out of the cage, concluding the transaction, and the discussion.

~~~

Chiron was pensive. Looking through the bay window, his eyes followed the specks of red light bathing the few planets neighboring the space station. Stable 2 was the second he had set in the Proxima system of the Centaury constellation. One of his first foray into xeno research needed dedicated space in an isolated surroundings. The sight used to bring pride into his heart, nowadays, he remained unmoved.

"... settled... check done... parasite... structure than the previous lot... same branch of the species... all according to plan so far..."

The red light from the star was really dim, Chiron observed, his wandering mind drowning the monotonous rhythm of the report.

Despite his impatience to leave with his new 'pets', there were some necessary, yet boring tasks to handle. He happily let those to be handled by the lab rats. His first enthusiasm for all the setting up for his plan had faded a long time ago. Only unexpected results could stir his boredom.

"Is the cargo ready?"

It was time. Time for Chiron to start the final step in his experiment.

He started as an enthusiast xenobiologist, in his younger years. At that time, the hunt for exotic animals all across the galaxy was in its inception. Bringing in its wake a thirst for understanding the formation of the Universe and the evolution of life.

As a Centaury, the most evolved species in the Proxima system, and even in the quadrant, Chiron always wanted to understand why other animals had not reached the same stage of development. There were some basic lifeforms, fulfilling their primal roles of perpetuating their species through reproduction. Then, he had found a species or two with intelligence and a certain degree of intelligence, but it never reached the level of sentience required to become the equal of the Centauries.

"All is set to launch, sir. The cargo is settled and the we can depart at your convenience."

The mechanical voice from the vessel mainframe rang through the deck. This big iron had been with Chiron since the beginning of the project, many years ago. It felt like eons for the beast. The machine had no such concept in its database. Maybe, after he concluded the present research, Chiron could look into the development of singularity. Between animal and machine, in the end, he found seldom any difference. One, like the other, started into an infancy, learned from environmental factors as much as from some inherited traits, be them programmed by nature or by someone with the necessary technical knowledge. The debate of Nature vs Nurture could well be applied to machine.

Thinking about these possibilities, Chiron's mood and enthusiasm seemed to rise again above the horizon of his sea of apathy. Maybe he had found his new direction.

~~~

As his vessel slowed down into the shadow of a small, barren moon, Chiron realized with surprise that he did almost enjoyed the journey. Usually, from Proxima to the Sol system, he would feel even more irritated by the smallest speck of dust colliding with his indifferent monotony.

Many discussions had sparked the travel as if thinking of starting a new project had started a regain of activity, even though it was to put a closure to the actual research. Everyone on the team adopted a similar view. Although none had much expectations on what they would find with the test subjects, they all decided to conclude this project in a most professional manner so they could turn the page and start anew.

On the other side of the desolate moon, a blue and green planet. When Chiron had endeavored his study on evolution and sentience, he acquired this corner of the galaxy. There was nothing of interest in this somehow small system. A handful of planets, and one only was inhabitable. This setting was not enough to settle a colony. This benefited Chiron who was able to register the system as a protected environment for xeno researches.

"That is it, everyone," Chiron called his team. "Let's conclude and clean up so we can be free to plan for the Singularity Development next."

Following his words, a flurry of activity stormed the vessel. The last acquisitions were prepared to be sent to the blue-green planet and the survey team readied themselves to follow and collect the data on the equipment installed in various parts of the planet and surroundings observation stations.

"Orbital team, can you confirm the position of the main group?"

Chiron consolidated the data from the past observations. With the previous group of animals he sent, they had observed a tendency to form groups with some hierarchical structure. The groups, while remaining small in numbers, where located in a definite area, as if they stayed near, but not together.

The observations had also provided information about a certain change in the climate. The surface of the planet temperature was notably going down. With the cold settling, a change of behavior was also notable.

"Position confirmed. The groups remained the same. But more packs can be observed in the area. It starts to get crowded."

"Interesting," Chiron thought. This confirmed that the animals where sensitive to temperature change. He wondered how they had adapted to the situation. The thought did not last long, however, just as a note top self to record properly the changes before turning the cover on the report.

"Ground team. Did you settle the last group?"

Chiron was already planning in his mind the requirements and working hypothesis for his new pet project. Singularity development... he would start with the mainframe of his vessel in order to set some core parameters.

"Ground team. Status please!"

He continued along his line of thinking, sorting a couple of possible directions. As his mind was turned toward the nascent project, Chiron did not realize readily that he had not received an answer to his last call.

"Ground team? Do you copy?"

Still no answer.

"Orbital! Do you have a reading on the ground team?"

"We lost contact, sir. Calibrating to find their frequency."

Minutes ticked as Chiron waited for an explanation. Frustration raised in him. This frustration did not came from boredom, though, but from puzzlement.

"We have a reading on ground team, sir." Relief washed over Chiron. The thought of singularity development temporarily relegated to the back of his mind. What had happened?

"Contact established, sir."

"Ground team?"

"Sir! Requesting support. We settled the last group. On our way back to the shuttle, we received projectiles. There seem to be a group of unknown between our present position and the shuttle."

"Orbital? Check for signs of alien vessels in the orbit of the planet. Signs of communication also."

This system was his, Chiron thought. No other research group had asked for an exchange. So who were those aliens?

"Sir? Nothing on the radars. And the antennas are not picking any disturbance."

"Do you have a visual?" Chiron's perplexity built up. And with it, and uncomfortable feeling settled in the pit of his stomach.

"Visual acquired. Ready to transmit."

An holographic projection of the whole area where the new group of subjects had been dropped appeared. The projection showed also the position of a good number of the older groups. Chiron's eyes slowly roamed the curved of the terrain displayed in front of him. His puzzlement reaching a paroxysm.

"Are those the older packs?" Requesting confirmation from the measurements and information collected, he stood there immobile. Surveying the projected images, his eyes grazed the many groups of animals. He knew these beings, yet he felt like discovering a new species.
"Are they... ?"

Chiron's new project of singularity development research left his mind completely.

For the past centuries he had devoted himself to observing the evolution of life. He had transplanted a somehow intelligent species of four legged primate on an hospitable planet and followed the adaptability of these animals.

Who would have thought that they would evolve so much?

They now stood straight on their hind legs...