Chapter 2: Larse

We were led outside where there were what I took to be three buses. Each had four wheels set in a diamond pattern, but, apart from that, they looked much like their terrestrial equivalent. Kerl split us up into three parties, and each party boarded one of the buses, together with one of our hosts.

There was no driver, and I assumed that Kerl would be driving. Instead, he spoke a few words, and turned towards the rest of us. I was surprised when the bus started up, for it was completely silent. The ride was extremely smooth, although I felt that, if anything, it was too smooth. Leaving the space port, I could see that we were some five miles from the nearest city. The road was wide, and tree lined. On either side there were cultivated fields, and we could see crops away into the distance. It was very reminiscent of home.

Passing through the suburbs, we could see good sized homes, set comfortably apart from each other. Finally we approached the city center. The tallest buildings seemed to top out at six to eight stories. We drew up to a large building, fronted with steps that stretched the whole width of the building.

Kerl said, "We would like to show you this museum, and to hear your opinions of it. We call it the Earth Museum, and we are quite proud of it. If you would be so kind as to follow me."

He led us off the bus, and into the building. It had the typical look of a museum, including the knick-knack shop in the foyer.

"We were given the task of compiling this museum when we finished our Galactic apprenticeship. At that time, your world was in it's stone age. Agriculture was becoming more widespread, and taking over from the hunter gatherer culture. The latest inventions at that time were the plough, and the wheel. Metals were being discovered. It was a most exciting time for our observers. Can you imagine the excitement of watching the emergence of civilization?"

"Yes. It's still exciting for us, and we're only digging it up, and not watching it."

"Of course, yours was not the only species we were monitoring. There were the Thorangians."

"The Thorangians... ?"

"Yes, the race that emigrated to Osmum."

"It must have been a disappointment when they had that atomic war?"

"Yes, it was, and your cold war a hundred years ago gave us pause. We were worried about your survival."

"We had our own worries for a while. Nowadays our worries are about terrorism."

"Can you tell us, please," I looked round at the speaker. It was Brian Crisp, and he was holding Weem's hand, "Is there a similar museum for Osmum, and Thorang ... Their earlier home?"

"Yes, and for a couple more planets that still have a long way to go."

We were escorted through the museum. It was fascinating to see pictures of actual events such as the building of Stonehenge, and the Egyptian Pyramids, events that we had only surmised about.

There were pictures, and models of fauna now extinct; wooly mammoths, aurochs, bluebucks, and many more. Most of them were completely strange to me. There were some early hominids as well. Many of the labels bore two names, the Larsian name, and where applicable, a human name.

The tour of the museum took the rest of the day. Kerl promised to show us some of the industries, in the morning, which would assist humans to colonize some of our local exoplanets.

That evening over dinner, we discussed what we had seen at the Earth Museum. Weem seemed impressed with some of the early human achievements. There was nothing comparable on Osmum, and she wasn't aware of anything similar on Thorangia.

Charles Benson said, "Did you see what I took to be photovoltaic panels on their roofs? They seem to be much more widespread than on Earth."

"Yes," replied June MacTavish, "Their Doctor said they were about ninety seven per cent efficient."

"About twice as efficient as ours at home," I put in.

"And how about all that greenery? Their large buildings looked like a forested area," Susan said.

The evening eventually wound down, and we retired for the night. The next morning we were rejoined by our hosts, and after breakfast, we were bussed to one of their seaports. The first point that struck us was the lack of people. Ships were being loaded, and unloaded with no visible Larsian participation. Kerl told us that the whole port was run with only five staff. Most of the work was performed by robotic machines.

That was the theme for the rest of the day. Machines did most of the work, supervised by a small number of people. One of the more interesting factories we visited was a 'meat' factory. Yes, a meat factory, or perhaps an indoor 'farm' would be a more accurate description. At one end, materials went in. At the other, fully packed retail joints came out. The small quality control team told us that the process was pretty stable, and ran for several weeks at a time without need for adjustment. Their main achievements lay in introducing new flavors, and textures.

A few other factories that we visited were running completely unattended. Eventually we visited one where we saw someone. Kerl approached him, and found that he was making a modification to the manufacturing line. He was a chatty soul, and was delighted to stop, and chat with us. Kerl translated both ways.

We reentered the buses, and went on. Soon we were passing through farming country, and although we saw machines working the land, they were doing so without people. A few more miles further on, and we arrived at one of their centers of further learning. As our buses drew up, a welcoming party emerged from one of the buildings.

As we got down from the buses, a bearded gray-haired individual stepped forward, and said, "Welcome to the Earth Studies Department of the University of Halvdor. Our hope is that your stay here is enjoyed."

"Let me introduce you to Professor Elkir, who is your host for this evening, and tomorrow," said Kerl to me.

"I'm pleased to meet you," I said, and automatically put out my hand in greeting.

The Professor looked at my hand outstretched as though I was about to strike him. He gradually relaxed, and accepted my hand with his, which I shook. He then led me into the building. The people in front of us split, and we went into a large room. At one end there was a table laden with bottles, and glasses. Looking at the bottles, I was surprised to see familiar labels. Professor Elkir had been watching me.

"We wanted you, and your people to feel at home," he chuckled.

"Tell me, please, if I'm not being rude," I asked, "but you seem to have a Scottish accent? I think that I also hear a French accent from over there. How is that?"

"One of the requirements for working here is an aptitude for learning languages. You will hear over fifty different accents here, if you are able to differentiate them. We could not anticipate which of your terrestrial nations would be the first to visit, and so we investigated all the likely candidates, as well as some of the less likely."

"So, tell me please, what is it that you do here?"

"Up to now, we have been studying the peoples of Earth, but the emphasis will change as your people start coming here to learn about the other peoples of the galaxy. There may also be some exchanges in academics, but the main intake here will be the core of the effective apprentices of your race. We need to teach both the explorers of the near future, and more importantly the teachers of explorers of the distant future."