After Lieutenant General Christie and the dozens of infected crew members had received proper treatment and been settled in, the Orville finished three days of refitting and repairs. It once again resumed its usual patrols, cruising around within the Planetary Union's territory and along the borders.
Then, during what should have been an easy, leisurely patrol, the Orville made an astonishing discovery on a desolate planet called Nalan One: narrow-band radio waves, coherent pulses, and noise with no background source?
The planet Nalan One had a breathable atmosphere, though for some reason. But it was so barren, with such a fragile ecosystem and no valuable minerals, that no one had ever wanted to colonize it. Yet the Orville had detected a huge amount of electromagnetic radiation and other anomalies there, as if tens of thousands of life-forms had gathered on the planet.
It was truly inexplicable. Ed was sure the planet had no development plans, and the last time they'd passed by had been only a few months ago. There was no way it could have changed so dramatically in a mere few months.
Since it was only a dozen or so light-years away—a journey of just one hour for the Orville—Captain Ed didn't hesitate. In keeping with his duty, he ordered the ship to head straight for the planet and take a closer look.
But...
After scanning the planet, the Orville made an astonishing discovery: a world that had been completely barren and devoid of life just a few months earlier now had a civilization comparable in scale and development to twenty-fifth-century Earth—and a population of more than eight billion.
Faced with such an absurd situation, the dozen or so officers on the Orville's bridge, Captain Ed included, could only cry out in disbelief that it was impossible.
So!