Mythicalia

    Everyone on Earth watched as the ship took off with all their hopes and dreams aboard.  The Earth was dying, it could no longer produce enough food for its people.

Farmlands were destroyed to put up housing for the high population.  The World's leaders had convened to find a solution, this was it.  A list of twenty inhabitable planets had been made, the five most like Earth's were chosen for colonization.  This was the first of those missions, launched by the United States simply because they were the first ones ready.

    The planets were in different solar systems, all of them had been explored by remote. Pictures and samples brought back proved that they were much like Earth except they were not thought to have intellegent or human-like life forms.

      Fifty volunteer colonists were aboard this flight.  Doctors trained in natural remdies, scientists to test the new vegetation, and farmers to till the land.  They were given tools,but no weapons.  They would have to farm and hunt in the way of the Native Americans.  They learned this from books and classes held on the ship during the full year it took them to reach thier destination.  They also learned to make log cabins in the style of American Colonists.  It would be a hard life at first, but most of them had stronger wills than bodies. 

      One such person was Tracy,a scientist. Another was Daniel a carpenter back on Earth.  They hung out a lot together on the ship learning from each other.

    The Pilots announced the landing and everyone got their gear.  A tent, an axe, a rope, and a tool belt with a knife, and a scraper. They also had two-man saws for cutting down the really big trees they would need to build the cabins.  The ship landed in the middle of a big prairie where there was no water or shelter, they knew they would have to travel right away.  They gathered up and discussed whic way to go, Tracy immediately took a leadership role leading the discussion.  Then when it was decided they would go North and East Tracy led the way while Daniel took the back to watch for stragglers.  It took them four days to reach an area that looked  reasonably able to support them. 

    They got up early the fifth morning to begin work on the cabins.  Splitting into three groups they built the cabins by first cutting down the trees wiht their saws then using the axes they cut off the branches, split the logs and gauged grooves so they would fit snuggly together.  Tracy and the other women planted gardens near where the cabins were being built. 

      On their sixth day on the new planet they got a surprise.  A group of people came to them.  They looked like they had walked out of every fantasy story ever written. They had pale skin, Almond shaped eyes, long ears that pointed at the top, and long silky hair.  They wore what appeared to be silk garments and spoke in a musical language.  They were Elves and they had come to stop the destruction of theit beautiful forest.

      One of them switched to English.

      "Why are you cutting down our beautiful old trees?" She asked

      "To make our homes." Tracy answered her for the group.

      "Why do you not just use your magic to make them grow together as we do?"

      "We have no magic" Daniel piped in.  He was enraptured by the beauty of the Elf.

      "Are you not Elves like us?"

      "No we are human, we come from another planet far,far away." Tracy said

      "And you do not know magic?"

      "No we arrived here on a spacecraft" Daniel answered

      "We plan to replace your trees by planting seeds that drop off of them." Tracy added

      Angelia, the Elf that spoke English went back to the delegation and explained what had been said.  After much discussion it was decided that it was good that they would replace the trees with seeds.  After watching for awhile the Elves noticed how hard the Colonists were working and decided to help.  They used their magic to shrivel up the roots so it would be easier to remove the stumps.  The elves also noticed that nothing went to waste.  Stumps and branches were used as firewood.

Small animals caught in snares were cooked as stews the skins put away to be tanned and made inot clothing later.  bones were broken for marrow then carved to make flatware, beads and flutes.  They used the sinew to make string for sewing and fishing. Hooks were carved of bone.  The fish they caught was a rainbow color that had to be skinned like a catfish but tasted like crab.  They checked the snares at sunset when they quit work on the cabins and began their nightly chores. 

      Daniel had sharpened one of the branches to make a spear, altough many had doubted it would work, he brought in a young deer.  Everyone was happy with this it meant that they would not starve this winter. 

    Soon harvesting season was upon them a time called Autumn on Earth The Elves taught the Colonosts how to put away food for the winter.

Seeing the beautiful colors, the women started dreaming of weddings.

Tracy brought this up to Angelia who had become her good friend.  Angelia suggested they allow the Elves to marry them.  Some argued that it would not be a legal wedding according to Earth's laws, but Tracy argued harder that it really didn't matter as they were so far from earth.

Finally it was agreed that a wedding by the Elves woould be legal for them.  Many couples were married by the Elven Priestess that fall.

Although Daniel and Tracy were not one of them.