Chapter 13 - Europa

All these worlds are yours, except Europa. Attempt no landing there. Use them together, use them in peace. - Space Odyssey 2010 - Arthur C Clarke

John Robbins approached the gleaming skyscraper that was New Worlds Exploration headquarters. On the outside it was a much needed American success story, overtaking all other space exploration organisations before it both government and private, including Space-X. Behind the scenes told a different story. At all meetings was Lü Zhi. John judged her to be in her mid forties and she ruled those meetings with a rod of iron. Although he had been raised as an American he was also of Chinese origin. Not that that made a difference to Lü Zhi. Either no one knew anything about her or no one was saying. What everyone had seemed to work out was that the headquarters was not the real headquarters and the New York presence was merely a publicity stunt.

John was here on an internship, he had only just left his teens and soon he would be completing a double PhD in genetic engineering and computer programming. He had been given short notice of this meeting, as had everyone else. He got in the elevator and saw a few familiar faces. Judging by the look of them they knew about as much as he did, which was zilch. The lift opened for them to get out with ten minutes to spare. The idle conversation around the coffee machine were various participants trying to ascertain the surprise interruption to their schedules. They seated themselves around the table.

Precisely on time Ms Zhi entered. "Ladies, Gentlemen I shall not keep you guessing as to why I have got you here at such short notice. I apologise John for not giving you a heads up on this but I am formally offering you the newly created position of Director of Astrobiology." She apologised, she never apologised. She smiled, she never smiled. John was taken aback. He collected himself.

"I do feel honoured Ms Zhi for your overly generous interpretation of my abilities. Astrobiology is unique among the sciences as there is no certainty as to whether the subject matter exists."

"I can assure you that it does, specifically on Mars confirmed by complexity analysis of the Viking data of 1976 and magnetofossils in meteorite ALH84001. Furthermore one of our own spacecraft have retrieved live cells from the upper clouds of Venus - a world first and a corporate secret. Follow the missing carbon monoxide."

John's heart leaped at the new knowledge. This was an incredible opportunity, a chance in a lifetime, "Subject to an agreement on remuneration, in principle I accept..."

"Those negotiations will commence immediately after this meeting. Meanwhile I shall lay out my vision for our endeavours in this field. To date all gene patents are from this planet - a small speck of dust in the vast cosmos. In 1926 H.P Lovecraft wrote - and I quote: We live on a placid island of ignorance in the midst of black seas of infinity, and it was not meant that we should voyage far. Today ladies and gentlemen New World Exploration calls upon you to challenge that statement. Today we set sail on a mighty voyage of discovery, to lift the veil on the infinite and expand our minds to take in the vastness before us. To become as gods. The goal is not to find a rock at a great distance but to understand the life that we find where ever it can be found. How it has adapted and how it can help us and our machines adapt as we reach out for new territory.

Recent studies suggest that within the grand scheme of the universe, intelligent life got off to an early start here on Earth. By an early start we are probably the only planet that has spawned a technological civilization in this, the Milky Way galaxy. Throughout history Kings and Emperors have fought for a tiny parcel of land on a pale blue dot, dwarfed as it orbits its mediocre star. I believe we are destined for a greater glory. With our early start comes an incredible responsibility. A responsibility to help life on its way. It is not noble to sit back for 3.7 billion years waiting for a planet to finally give rise to intelligent life. Our mission is to help the rest of the universe awaken into consciousness and give it direction, our direction. Our actions shall echo through the corridors of eternity, as will the reward and humanity's place in the cosmos.

I conclude this meeting."

The salary negotiations went well for John. While he realised the enormity of the task before him he considered the risk quite small. True, no one had ever done what he was tasked to set out to do, but then again no one would consider him a failure if he didn't succeed. He could always find a respectable career elsewhere if he couldn't pull off the "impossible".

The biggest technical barrier he would face is the same one that the other scientists faced. Energy. While thorium reactors could supply enough energy for Mars, Earth had a lot of safe energy. Thorium was a lot safer than uranium, it could be buried and not last thousands of years. But for those first few decades it was just as dangerous. On Earth you can carry a log of wood touching your bare skin if needs be. Such convenience makes life far easier on Earth. When you need constant shielding from the world around you then life becomes difficult. Tradies take the opportunity to stand in the open air for granted, but how do you build a city while remaining constantly sheltered.