Unworthy

Unworthy is a bit of flash written based on a picture prompt.  I hope you will enjoy it.

They waited. Tension filled the air and mingled with the yellow light of the moon. The council had been called, and so the council had arrived. They were told to meet under the dead oak. Some muttered about how that didn’t bode well.

And yet, no one seemed the know why. They stared up at the stars questioning. Would the answer come from above? That seemed unlikely as they hadn’t heard from home base in several decades.

They’d waited, as they did tonight, and eventually they lost faith in rescue. Theirs was a recon mission turned exile. Many had made a life here on this strange planet where men built invisible barriers to separate themselves from their fellows.

Some had even broken the cardinal law of Tertian Explorers and had made a union with a local. Tertians were to observe and report, but never to intermingle. They could not risk dilution of their gene pool.

A low rumble broke the silent tension, and the council crowded closer to the tree. Looking to one another for some suggestion as to the origin of the noise. They weren’t left to wonder long.

The pale yellow light of the moon was washed out by the brilliant blue of a Tertian ship as it landed smoothly in the open field, its door dropping open with a metallic thunk.

Each wondered who would emerge, and grew nervous as the doorway remained vacant. At long last, someone suggested that perhaps they should board the ship.

Inside was cool and the hum of machinery greeted them followed by the slamming of the hull door.

A Tertian man in full dress uniform emerged from the cabin as the ship took off. “Welcome back explorers. You have done your duty well. The High Council has reviewed and debated, and a final decision has been long in coming. This planet is a marvelous creation, but it has been deemed unworthy and will be extinguished.”

There were gentle gasps from the council – most of which had begun to think of this Earth as their home after so many years of living there, and open weeping from the female who had created a union with an Earth man.

Arguments began to erupt in defense of the planet, but they were drowned out by the blast. Through the windows, the explosion was brilliant, and the council was shocked into silence as they watched their onetime home disintegrate before their very eyes.

Thank you for your time, and more importantly: thank you for reading Unworthy. If you enjoyed it, and want to encourage others to read it, please take a moment (just a few minutes!) to leave a review of this story in the comments. Your honest feedback is all I ask, negative or positive!