the Masterpiece. The one creation in which the apprentice
proves that he is apprentice no more and is a master at
last. Written in a frevor of Sci-Fi muse over the course of
agonizing 29 hours, this is the border line. There is me
before Cobalt and me After Cobalt... and this is the
masterpiece. :)

And when the hourglass has run out, the hourglass of
temporality, When the noise of secular life has grown silent
and its restless or Ineffectual activism has come to an end,
when everything around you Is still, as it is in eternity,
then eternity asks you and every Individual in these
millions and millions about only one thing:
Whether you have lived in despair or not.

Soren Kierkegaard,
"The Sickness Unto Death"

For Magic, my late dog, who held the mystery of Cobalt at
the tip of his tongue.


It's all about Cobalt

Day 1, Arrival

It is all about Cobalt. "Cobalt," people say, "what an
uncreative name for a mountain ring in a continent named
Indigo". Since the standard-issue English has it's
upper-limits and there were around 2500 continents to name,
not to mention over 5 million cities, 150 thousand districts
and who knows how many sites, names were becoming creatively
uncreative 500 year ago. Thus, in Crimson, the 2nd planet of
the Shaka Zulu system, continents were named Indigo,
Corrosion, Plankton and Watermelon. As the names would
suggest, the four continents cover merely 10% of Crimson,
letting the dark blue waters of the ocean world cover the
rest. When spaceborne humanity discovered Crimson, plans
were made to dry some of the planet, using singularity
busters for it. That would have killed billions of innocent
ocean-creatures but who cared. Humanity needed the living
space, their lebensraum as some might say.  Luckily, the
atrocity was never executed. All because of Cobalt. Of
course. Everything here is around and about Cobalt. I'm here
because of Cobalt. I don't give a penny-cred about the other
things in this planet. Yes, it's beautiful. From the air,
through the windows of the transport I watched those waters,
deep blue desert, soothingly calm waves and the isles of the
deep slowly preying for their lunch. It's beautiful, no
doubt. But it's not for me. I never needed soothing waves. I
might find my calmness in hunting down one the colossal
brown whales commonly called Isles of the deep. If I get the
time. I'm not here for that. No. I intend to solve the
mystery of Cobalt, like thousands intended in the past 50
years. The only difference is that I intend to be the first
one who comes back to tell the tale. Maybe then I would be
able to forgive myself and face Reg again. I guess she's
still waiting in that cold-fusion space-refrigerator. It
doesn't matter right now. I might be able to send her a vid
when I finally catch hold of myself. I still love her, I
think. Never mind for now. Right now, I must concentrate at
only thing: Cobalt. What is it, over there? What makes it
such an non-retrievable area? It's not White Death, is it?
White Death would have taken Bluefeeling long time ago had
it been so strong. No. What then? What made the
Satellite-survey 'miss' that area? What made the two
atmospheric surveyor report that they see 'something' and
then disconnect them? What happened to HSS Regent, when she
suddenly warned engine malfunction and was never heard of
again? What can kill the fail-proof engines of a colonizer?
And supposing she crashed, what happened to Humanity
StarShip Regent's colonists? The ship was built to survive
an impact with a class three asteroid. What type of crash or
weapon (other than Sinbusters) can kill all the 10,000
colonists? Is there a connection between Cobalt and White
Death? So many questions to be solved. It's all about
Cobalt.

Day 2, Bluefeeling

This city's name fits her well. It makes me depressed to see
this, especially when I think about the fact that I have to
stay here for few days before I can carry off to the north.
I paid twenty creds for a guide. They gave me a man named
Ekin Nefood. The name itself makes me quiver. In one native
language of Ronald Reagan Secunda, the name states
"Half-dead Ekin". When I wondered about it a loud, Ekin
merely opened his cheap shirt and showed me three gray round
spots, on his chest, his belly and his lower back. They were
big, perhaps 4 millimeters in diameter and completely dead.
He told me that they were 'a gift' from a White Death he
fought in the last raid on Bluefeeling. "You were a
fighter?" I dared asking. He smiled and shook his head.
"When White Death raid, everybody fights, children and
elders too" he said. The gray spots are amazing. Simply by
touching, White Death gives you a spot that never heals.
Ekin says he scratches off the rotting top layer every day.
"One day I'd scratch and see the flesh under them," he said.
Yuck. He helped me today in buying supplies. One market
salesman offered me a specially modified Phasegun that
supposedly hurts the White Death. I was almost fooled when
he claimed it helped his brother during raids, the only Beam
weapon that could hurt them. Ekin dragged me to the side and
told me not to buy that Phasegun. "Why?" I asked. "Think
about the facts," offered Ekin, "A beam weapon that hurts
White Death and the militia don't own it yet? He says it
belonged to his brother. Does the brother not need anymore?
In the days of biogen-immunity systems and longevity
vaccine, what in the world could make the brother, or for
that matter, the salesman himself, give up such a weapon?
Death by White Death or simple lies". I felt so stupid. I
almost repeated the same mistake the cost me Reg. Ekin saved
me.

He's not willing to come with me all the way to Cobalt. He
says he'd rather just give himself to the White Death than
chance 'that place'. He'll show me the way to the mountains
but I would climb alone. Pity. Ekin is witty and has the
proofs of surviving a close combat with a White Death so
he's also skillful. I could use his help. Alas, he's not
willing to enter Cobalt. He thinks that something terrible
lurks there, even more terrible than White Death. What the
hell could be more terrible than White Death? I must say
that it seems as if he's not truly afraid of the White
Death. I think it is because he proven to himself that he
can overcome one of them and thus he knows he can do it
again. It seems that nothing really scares him, except for
Cobalt. It's all about Cobalt.

Day 4, Bluefeeling

Tomorrow's the big day. I met with several airmen in the
past two days, trying to convince them to fly us towards
Cobalt. No matter how much creds I offered, no one dares to
take the risk and fly close to that 'no-fly-zone'. I
resolved to use jabbermooses, as the terrain is too rough
for any type of ground vehicles. It was a nasty surprise to
find out that the Frank Sinatra VII originated riding beast
is nowhere to be found on this planet. It appears as if the
White Death are attracted to the jabbermoose like Isles of
the deep to shipwreck survivors. 'Must be the slobberful
chattering sounds they make,' I thought with no humor. I'd
have to settle for a horse.  It would slow me down and I'd
have to give up some of my equipment for it. Horses. Blah.
Did humanity really find these weaklings as true riding
beasts? I'd have to find out sometime in the future. But not
now. Now I have to sleep. Tomorrow is the big day. I'm not
feeling so blue when I think about it. Cobalt awaits my
quest. I hope I get to see a White Death while I'm at it.
See from afar, of course, and while hiding. I've no
intention to fight these monsters. But still, they should be
enchanting creatures, a sight for the ages. I've learned a
new word today - Flow. It means encountering with White
Death. I've no idea what's the bond between White Death and
rivers but... what the hell. It's probably connected with
Cobalt as well. It's all about Cobalt.
God, that seems to become my motto. Doesn't matter what's my
motto. It won't hurt me if I have one, especially in this
quest. After all, this quest is about Cobalt. It's all about
Cobalt.

Day 8, Limp plains

God, names here are so suitable. I'd never call this place a
plain unless I added that limp thing. There's some type of
grass here, but there are small rocks and small holes that
can obstruct any ground vehicle. They limit the horses too.
Jabbermooses could walk over here easily. Their tough broad
feet could ignore both rocks and holes. Damn it, I feel
we're moving so slowly. Ekin says we're doing ok. I haven't
seen a living soul in the past day. We'll be entering The
Goof tomorrow. Ekin says we should be able to pass it alive,
if we hide ourselves good enough and if we're cautious
enough. I'm pretty nervous about entering The Goof. Once
again a suitable name: only a pure idiot should enter the
land of the White Death on his own wish. A pure idiot or
someone who wants to solve the Cobalt Mystery. I've heard
that The Goof itself is a ring that surrounds the mountain
ring of Cobalt. You can't find White Death anywhere else.
What is the connection between White Death and Cobalt? Once
again, it all comes back to the same thing. It's all about
Cobalt.

Day 10, The Goof

Flow today.
From afar I have watched them for the first time. Ogelar,
the first researcher to investigate the rumors of mysterious
ghosts in the whereabouts of Bluefeeling, He returned from
his second tour, in a near death state. His skin was rotting
at most places, and already his body decayed from the
inside. He was half crazy, suffering these agonies, and kept
repeating "White Death, White Death". The gender of the noun
White Death is not very clear, nor the singular/plural. Not
just cause. There's an unnatural feeling when you look at
that creature. It's hard to describe the White Death. It's
seems to be not fully corporeal. For a moment it seems as a
bipedal creature, with a bear-like body, a cone head with
two beaks and two limbs going out of it. But then it...
changes... and seems to be multi-pedal, with six limbs and
three beaks. For a time, you might think that the White
Death is more like two or three creatures in on big pile.
Hence the problems with deciding whether it's a White Death
or White Deaths. Their beaks, I heard, carry that
decay-ooze. If they bite you, there's nothing you can do,
aside from shortening your suffer with the generous aid of a
Phasegun. The limbs carry three to nine fingers that carry a
smaller amount of the decay-ooze, to cause the gray spots.
Hence the name White Death. I figured the 'flow' thing too,
but it has nothing to do with electricity. The White Death
doesn't walk or run or fly or crawl. They don't seem to use
their pedals at all. Instead. They... stream... from place
to place. It seems as if the creature is... bringing the
place to it while standing still. Very incorporeal feeling.
Hence the word: flow. I wished Reg could see this flow.
She'd love the enchanting look. I miss her so much. Not too
long before I can declare myself worthy of her love and wake
her up. Only eleven days to Cobalt. It's all about Cobalt.
We're hiding in a small cave tonight. My shift is almost
over. I'll wake up Ekin soon and go to sleep. I'll dream,
most probably about Cobalt. As usual, it's all about
Cobalt.

Day 12, deep in The Goof.

Cry havoc, let loose the dogs of war! That's Shakespeare.
I'm in the mood for Shakespeare. A horse! My kingdom for a
horse! By foot, it would take fifteen days instead of nine!
Ha, if I'd get that creep I'd... Feel the wrath of my
rapier, you scoundrel! God, I am Shakespearian today! I wish
I get a shot at that creep! I'd make him pray to rot like
the kingdom of Denmark was rotten! Oh well, Ce'st la vie.
What's got to be, got to be. Idiotic idioms! I could use a
good mug of Solomon's now. Or two mugs. Two beer or not two
beer. And why is this happening? Why has it got to be?
Because I failed my Reg, brought shame upon myself and had
dared my self to this quest. It's all about Reg.

And about Cobalt, of course.

Day 13, Deep in the Goof

Reading yesterday's entry, I figured that I haven't
described what happened. I was too pissed to write down what
happened. Instead I recalled a number of Shakespeare's best
quotes. I bet no one even know Shakespeare today. Hell, most
humans don't care to know about Earth more than the fact
that we originated there. Anyway... We were riding the
horses down a slope when we had a flow. The White Death
hardly resembled the creature I've seen in first flow. It
was larger, that's first. Then, its changing forms were
built other than the first one. As it streamed towards us, I
noted that it didn't shift shapes. It just looked different.
No change was made but it looked different. I must say that
when I saw the first one passing south to us I thought it
was enchanting. When that one streamed at us, it was not
enchanting anymore. It was horrifying. Ekin managed to draw
the projectile-gun we bought. Unloaded a magazine at the
White Death. The White Death grabbed my horse, throwing me
in the air and then streamed to the third horse, biting it.
Then it fled the second salvo from Ekin. I'd say it was
simply preying. We gave the third horse a merciful death by
the point of a knife and put all supplies at Ekin's horse.
We're walking by foot since then. No wonder I'm pissed. And
we're down to five clips for the projectile-gun. The problem
with the White Death is that you don't know where to aim. We
have no idea about their anatomy. When they die they
instantly... melt... into one rotting piece of decay-ooze.
Very strange. The insubstantial feeling is only intensified
from close range. They look like a very real holo. Of
course, I never seen a holo kills a very corporeal horse.
For that matter, ten minutes after we killed the supply
horse, it was already decaying, at a very fast rate. Ekin
offered we go back but I refused. "I'd rather walk by foot,"
I told him, "than go back now". I told him he can go, and I
added that he can take the horse too, just to be fair. He
shook his head and said he'd rather walk by foot than leave
me behind. How humorous. I feel Cobalt. The mystery is
crying in my bones, wishing for a solve. I must solve the
mystery. It's all about the mystery of Cobalt.

Day 15, Cutter's Crater

Good thing I don't own a kingdom. I'd have to give it away,
right now. And not for a horse! A donkey! A Donkey! My
kingdom for a donkey! Well not exactly a donkey, rather more
a Crimson style donkey. It resembles a donkey in everything,
aside from being able to live unharmed in The Goof and...
well... it's being most compliant. We encountered a herd of
them donkeys in the entrance to Cutter's Crater. They seem
to be pretty intelligent, and their calm stride makes them
ideal for bareback riding. And they show no sign of
resentment. Lovely. About Cutter's Crater, I'm now revealing
confidential info. Everyone knows that the HCO, Human
Colonization Organism, has sent a ship full of Singularity
Buster warheads towards the ocean planet Crimson. The
Sinbusters, Black-hole-generators as called by common
people, were to evaporate certain parts of the oceanic
terrain, making a coastline withdrawal. But, the official
story claims, the discovery of Cobalt's mystery scared HCO
so much that they decided to call back the colonization
efforts, other than the empty-tanked colonizers that had no
fuel for a second hyperspace jump. It takes no less than a
year to refuel these ships with solar-collectors, so HCO
told them they can land if they don't want to wait a year
and return. All eight colonizers landed. But, according to
the official story, HSS B. Spears was recalled. Something
went wrong during the navigation shift and HSS B. Spears
disappeared. Ekin told me the true story, as few on Crimson
knew it. HSS B. Spears was never called back. It received a
change in the mission plan. Instead of simply delivering the
warheads and returning to base, Spears was ordered to make a
photograph run over Cobalt, with two of the warheads armed.
If something went wrong, Spears was ordered to drop the
warheads or, if all else fails, proceed in kamikaze route to
Cobalt, creating an impact-blow of the warheads. HSS B.
Spears made contact five minutes before arriving Cobalt. It
authorized the command and stated that the Sinbusters are
'hot'. The last thing heard from HSS B. Spears was 'We're
going down. We managed to drop one warhead. Save us!'. To
the amazement of no one, the warhead fell dud, simply
creating a large crater by the impact. A rescue mission went
by ground. They returned with pictures of the crater, the
remnants of the warhead. Somehow they haven't made any
contact with the White Death. The remnants of the Sinbuster
revealed a certain surprise. The warhead was armed when it
hit the ground but still didn't erupt. No word was ever
heard from HSS B. Spears or her crew. The rescue mission did
bring the first knowledge about Cobalt itself. Being close
enough, they evaluated that the ridge is the source of the
problem. They wasted six holovids and hours trying to use a
telescope to get more information but nothing of the
electronics worked. The telescope, a state of the art
high-tech, could show them what's beyond the mountain ring
but simply blackened when it was aimed for the ridge that
would be discovered to be a complete ring few months later.
I observed Cutter's Crater, named after HCO's military
executive, one HighMarshal Cutter. "There is your
lebensraum," I thought with no humor. Then I tried to
observe the ring but haze lowered the visibility to a faint
glimpse of mountains. I asked Ekin what's gonna take us so
long to arrive there - eight days seems to much for such a
distance. He told me we're closing on a canyon that would
oblige us to detour. Bummer. Ekin claimed I'm just hurrying
for my death, but I hardly feel suicidal. I told him I
intended to be the first one to return, and the sooner we
get there, the sooner we start on our return. He just
laughed bitterly. I guess he heard that before. But no. I
will return because Reg depends on it. If I don't return
then she would never be awakened from her freeze. She'd stay
there until the cryofreezer failed or until it would lose
it's orbit and burn in Coca Cola IV's atmosphere. God, I
wish I had the nerves to go and wake her up now. But no.
Cobalt calls me. There's a mystery yet to solve. I suddenly
feel that all my life, Reg, the Maunid Ring, the works, it's
all concentrated in that place. It's all about Cobalt.
NOTE - I have to stop ending the entries with this
phrase.

Day 17, Edge of Pyrocanyon

Flow today.
From afar we watched two White Death composite into one. It
was weird to see them, rushing at each other at the bottom
of the canyon. There was an almost blinding flash when they
hit each other. We thought they were fighting but then there
was one White Death there, twice as big as they were. I know
that they are not fully substantial. I think they are able
to compose together. Hence the explanation for the changing
forms. It still leaves the insubstantial thing covered in
fog. What are the White Death? Why would a perfect god
create a universe with such creatures in it? Well, if I
think philosophy, why would a perfect god create a universe
at all? I wish I could scan one of them with the
medi-scanner we brought, but the only close contact we had
sent flying in air, hardly a suitable position for scanning.
Names continue to suit places. Pyrocanyon's bottom is made
of some shimmering red rock. It gives an illusion of fire
from above. Weird place in a weird planet. It's all about
Cobalt weirdness.

Day 21, the high-goof

Flow today. What's new?
Since Pyrocanyon, we get to see four to ten flows everyday.
The good news is that even when they see us, they don't come
near. I think the donkeys scare them or something. Perhaps
the donkeys are sacred. God knows. Two more days to Cobalt.
I'm having dumbassed second thoughts. If I die, than Reg
would be frozen stiff for centuries until she dies too. I
can't do that to her. I'm going to leave a note for the
commission nurse. If I don't come back, Ekin would bring it
back to her. The donkeys will guard him. I told him about
Reg today, including the Maunid Ring thing. He promised to
bring the note back if I don't make it out. I trust him. For
him, it's not all about the money, I think. So close to
Cobalt, you can see an amazing thing. All the mountains are
exactly the same. Exactly. These mountains are mirror image
of one another. Ekin says he never got so close to Cobalt.
He usually waits in the entrance to The High Goof. Another
suitable name, eh? He'll leave me tomorrow. Pity. I like
him. A good guy he is. It's not all about the money. I'll
write that note now. It's all about love and mistakes.

Dear Marian.
It's about Regina. The bearer of this note brings also the
news of my death. We never talked, though Reg told me a lot
about you. Knowing that she trusted you, I leave the
decision to you, as to what next. Obviously, simply
continuing her cryofreeze is certainly not an option if the
reason for the freeze is gone. I don't know how much she
told you about that incident with the Maunid ring and I
think you deserve to know everything before you decide. I
found the Ring in the markets of CD-ROM, arid planet of
Gates. The man that offered the ring said it contains a true
Maunid stone. I don't need to tell you how Maunid stones
give their wearer a bright aura. I bought it for Reg, as an
engagement ring. I came home and asked her to unite with me.
She said yes and I put he Maunid ring on her finger - how
archaic, eh? She brought it to her mouth and kissed it. Just
a simple show of appreciation and love. She got high
immediately. That ring was a fake, and the wannabe Maunid
stone had a certain crystalline powder at it's interior. It
drugged Reg instantly. But worse than the high was the
over-doze symptoms. I know you took care of her when she
slowly struggled to recuperate. By my own dumbness I
poisoned her. I couldn't look her in the eyes. She noticed
that. She told me to go and find my self-respect again and
then come back to her. Self respect my ass. I couldn't even
look at myself in the mirror. And then she sent me the
message about the cryofreeze. I still remember it clearly,
each note of her voice, each wrinkle on her face. "I await
your return," she said, "in cryofreeze over Coca Cola IV. I
can't live without you. When you finally understand that
it's not your fault, come back for me. There's no other who
is authorized to wake me up. I love you". Ah Marian, you
wouldn't know how I, the man who mapped the Tunnels of Hi-Fi
Stereo III, lost my pride. I had to find my manhood back
again. That's how I got here. It's up to you to decide
whether Reg lives or dies. Choose life.
No, choose death. She can't live witho       I don't know
what is the right choice. Choose well.
Thank you.
Reg's 'lone rose'.

Smoochy. Sticky. Cliché. Self pity. Yuck. I sometimes
think that Reg... no... the universe itself would be better
without me. I'm so dumb sometimes.

Half an hour later, Reading the above entry. Talk about
self-pity.

Day 24, COBALT!

I know! I know what are the White Death! I spent a whole day
fleeing a chase of a whole bunch of those poor souls but it
was worth it. Gee, I've lost contact with the prior entry.
Shit. Ok, from the beginning. I tried everything to convince
Ekin to continue on with me but it wouldn't work. He's going
to wait for two weeks, the maximum our supply allows to and
then, had I not returned, he'll return to Bluefeeling and
deliver my note. I wish he came with me. It was a sight for
the ages, what I saw yesterday. Just at the bottom of the
mountains lay an artifact of a familiar sort. It was a
hexagon, perhaps two meters in diameter, made out of
rock-like material. I've seen one of these rare artifacts in
the tunnels of HI-FI Stereo III during the mapping
expedition. There are seven of these hexagons in the known
universe and their function is unknown. Scientists tried to
reveal their secrets using research androids. All three
androids proved the same. They went into the misty electric
storm that rages at the middle of the hexagons and were
repelled back. All three androids lost their databases,
replacing their records in some imperceptible electric
noise. They never tried to send anything else into the
never-ending mayhems. Oh, what a mistake. When I approached
the 'Hex', I lost one of the two donkeys. The donkey that
carried my supply suddenly went mad and rushed into the Hex.
I wanted to stop it before it commits such a suicide but I
had to regain control over the donkey that carried myself. I
made it just in time to look and see the other donkey makes
contact with the Hex. Ah, Hex, what suitable short-name. The
donkey had a metamorphosis. At first I thought it was merely
repelled but then I noticed that it achieved a certain
holo-like insubstantiality. It looked at me and then it...
melted like the White Death do, changing its form. I found
myself staring at a holo of myself. My holo opened its mouth
but no sound came out. Then, the holo streamed at me. It
faded into my backpack and then returned. It changed form
again and became my diary, the one I write in right now. "Do
you want me to read?" I asked. The... thing... changed form
again. It was now two words, in my own handwriting, though
bigger, "Released. Thanks". "I released you?" I asked. The
words changed again, "to highest level of being". "Highest
level?" I asked, baffled. "Transcendence," answered the
thing, "Being of pure energy. All knowing, all seeing. One
with the universe". "Are you like the White Death?" I asked,
attempting to discover the secret of the terrible beings.
"No," the words glowed suddenly and I could swear I felt the
compassion they absorbed, "They are fallen between". "Fallen
between?" I tried to understand. A miniature holo of a
donkey and the hex appeared before me. Then, just between
them lay a White Death. "Fallen between," I repeated, "They
tried to transcend and failed?". "Not all succeed," agreed
that being of pure energy, "They frustrated themselves
because of their failure. They hate because of it. You go
now". "Go?" I asked, "Why?". The being changed shape again
and an arrow pointed behind me. I turned and was horrified
to see scores of White Death rush at me. "Frustrate!" the
word glowed in urgency, "GO!". I mounted my donkey again and
urged it to run. And it did. The White Death chased me for a
while but gave up the chase when they saw their stream is
not fast enough to catch the suddenly-fast donkey. I kept on
fleeing though, as I saw throngs of them flow, not towards
me but towards the Hex. I stopped only in the middle of the
night and fell asleep. I slept till noon this day. Then I
figured where I am and plotted a course. Right now, Cobalt
seems as merely a ring of identical mountains but I think
there is something inside them, in the middle. The key to
the riddle of Cobalt lays there. There seems to be a trail
separating between each pair of mountains. I'll take the
close one tomorrow.
I wish I had the time to ask the Transcend about Cobalt
but... Darned White Death. It's all about me and Cobalt now.

Day 25, Ascending

The trail is of some tough rock. It's hasn't got one hole in
it, nor a footprint. Cobalt. The riddle is about to unravel.
I now thank myself for the smart idea of pen and paper. My
electrobook's dead and so is any other electronic device I
brought. Hope I won't need the medi-scanner in time to come.
I'd bet ten creds that if I descend back, they would all
start functioning. But not now. Mechanical devices do work.
The pen seems to function properly (for such an antique) so
does the lighter I brought. I wish I had that projectile gun
to try it. I'd bet another ten creds that it would work. I
might need it too. Bummer. From where I stopped when the sun
went down, I could see the place where the trail breaks into
the ring. I should be there by the morrow. Analysis
continues tomorrow. It's all about Cobalt.

Day 26, The top of the world (Or something of the same
fashion)

My god. I arrived at the top of the trail by sundown. It's a
short entrance, about a kilometer long. That's a short
diameter for a mountain. And I'm not even close to the
peaks. I move to the middle of road before I stopped and
made my tent. From the midway, it seems as if both ends of
the trail are a pit. It's a very interesting optical
illusion. By now, I figured that whatever lays at the second
end of the trail is the key to the riddle. I wasn't attacked
by anything and, by comparing the last two entries and this
one to the older entries I figured that I'm still myself.
Ack! Just thinking about going mad without knowing it brings
me the chills. Tomorrow is the big day, I think. It's all
about tomorrow.

Day 27, Descent
morning
Interesting sight, from the top of the world. The trail seem
to go down and join with all the other trails in the valley
bellow. It's hard to tell what exactly is in this valley, at
least from here. I can see what seems to be a large metal
building of weird architecture. The mystery begins to be
unraveled. Cobalt, it's all about you. Here I come!

Afternoon - I had to stop and write once again. What a
disappointment! The metal building is no building at all.
While descending close enough, I can now say what it is.
That's the reason for adding a second entry before the
evening. The metal thing is a combination of what seems to
be the hull of a large-class Bomber on top of a colonizer.
I've found HSS B. Spears and HSS Regent. I'm not close
enough to really determine but both ships seem to be intact.
Right now there are no signs for the crew members of any of
the ships, though I'd bet a hundred creds that two
Reconnaissance fighters are buried underneath Regent.  The
mystery grows back. To more than it's original size, I'd
say. What's the secret of Cobalt?

Day 28, Valley of Cobalt.

It took me till noon this day to complete my descent.
Standing just near the weird environmental statue, I am sure
now that no damage was caused to Regent or Spears. It seems
as if Spears landed on to of Regent. I entered Regent
through a fully functional mechanic airlock. I couldn't say
I was truly surprised by the interior. From the outside,
Regent seems to have no structural damage. From the inside,
it seems as if everyone here left in a hurry. There were
three bodies in the morgue, but the logs on the freezers
tagged them as one suicide case, one accident (his head was
crushed by a slipping Vidscreen. Yuck) and another who took
an over-doze of  star balm. That guy certainly calmed his
astrophobia for good. Aside for them there are no bodies at
all. No blood signs either. I'd bet Spears is no different,
aside for some defunct Sinbuster warheads maybe. Weary now,
I intend to spend the night under the shade of this statue.
I thought of trying to find safety inside the ship but it
gives me the creeps. Regent belongs to the ghosts. The
living are not welcomed there anymore. At least that's how I
feel. Crazy, eh? Humanity is famed for over-evolved
imagination. Fine then. I found a small corner and made my
tent there. I made an alarm with two bells and a transparent
fishing cord. If anyone tries to enter this corner, he's
likely to touch the cord. I always hated waking up with
bells in my ears. Hope this night goes on safe. The mystery,
though yet to unravel, is close. Cobalt.

Day 29, captive (??)

I'm not sure about my status right now. I woke up with bells
ringing in my ears. At first, I thought that White Death
caught me or something but, surprisingly, it was a human, a
twenty-something male. He ordered me to come with him. I
would have objected his order unless I felt that diplomacy
at the point of the knife won't help when his 40 friends
stand five meters away. I obeyed. They took me to this
village. I don't know what this place is but there are
humans all around it. More than that, the village is
conducted of stone buildings with all the necessities
(Vidscreens are operational here!!!!). weirdly, you can see
all the Tops of the world from here, but from the top I
used, I couldn't see the village. Strange. So, I'm not
exactly a prisoner. I'm in an empty house and the door is
locked but I've received a fair treatment. What's going on
here?

Day 30, The Whole.

They call this place The Whole. I haven't found why, but I
guess it would suit this place no less than the goof or
Bluefeeling fit their names. I'm not a captive or anything.
Actually, they brought me in to join their village. I
received a bed last night, exactly the fitme-bed I like. I
can have anything I want (I'd love to discover where they
got real Aztecan wine from) and they told me that I could
ask anything I want to know. Everything seems peaceful
around here. What's happening here in Cobalt. Mystery
continues. I plan to spend no more than three days here
before I go back. And that of course is the first question
I'll ask. "Can I leave the whole?".

Day 32, The Whole.

Two days of inspection and I feel evermore baffled. These
people are the colonists of HSS Regent, the crew of HSS B.
Spears and the thousands of adventurers that tried to
unravel the mystery of Cobalt. I'd say I practically
unraveled most of it. Most, but not quite. First, the
electro-shutdown thing. Cobalt is not a natural ring and
valley. It's an artificial area, built by the same
mysterious alien culture that made the Hexagons. The
electroshutter is a simple defense mechanism. Cobalt itself
is a self-aware area - some sort of digital sentience is in
everything around here. They call it the Entity and the
Entity tends to take a good care of people. I think it reads
my mind for I just received a holovid of the tunnels at
HI-FI Stereo III. Funny. Now, lets skip to the weird parts.
The Entity won't hold you inside. I know. I asked it. It's
funny to see a recorded vid changing to give the answer. I
found no writing saying "You're free to go when you want
it," in the tunnels. Now the freaky part. People here don't
want to leave. They come and they remain.
Does the Entity hold them in some sort of mind-control? I
don't know.
I wish I had more time to stay but I have to go tomorrow.
Ekin's waiting for the solving of the mystery.

Day 33, the whole

There were gloomy clouds in the sky this morning. I decided
to delay my return. I had no desire to face the infamous
Crimson storms for the first time while climbing the trail.
I asked Entity about the valley today. I told it that it
seems irrational that over 12,000 humans could find space
for themselves in this small valley. For the first time
Entity responded with a sound. A synthesized laughter that
scared me for a second. Then, Entity spoke, in clear
rational standard-issue English. "Humans," it said, in a
sexless voice, "When would you learn that size doesn't
matter? The whole can hold your entire empire. My creators
made an extended space here". Whatever this 'extended space'
may be, it certainly is big enough to support over 12,000
humans without any crowding. I told Entity about my
intentions of leaving. It laughed again and said, "allow me
to serve you with another bottle of your favorite Aztecan. A
toast to farewell" and a bottle of Aztecan was standing on
the table and a one of two crystal glasses poured it's
content into the air. The gulp sounds were crazy. I wouldn't
believe it unless I saw it with my own eyes.
Tomorrow, I'm going back, storm or no storm.

Day 34, The Whole

I decided I dedicate this day to saying goodbye to people
around the village. I could always go out tomorrow and still
make it in time. One woman, Lyn they call her, shows
interest in me. A shame to disappoint her, she reminds me of
Reg so much.
I'm going to miss this place. After I tell the tale, I will
take a shuttle to Coca Cola and wake Reg. Together we'll
return here. This place is so nice. Tomorrow I'm going back
to tell the world everything about Cobalt. It's all about
Cobalt after all.

Day???? The Whole

I've no idea what day is this. Time flies here. I found this
diary yesterday under the mess of my desk. I'm not going
back. I finally figured out the secret of Cobalt, the Whole
or whatever name you choose to give it. Ekin's probably back
in Bluefeeling by now. I have no sense of time but I'd bet
it's been over four months. Poor chap, must think I'm dead
or something. If he knew. Lyn's cooking dinner now, how
funny. She likes cooking and I must admit she's a great
cook. But before my stomach intolerably demands dinner, I
feel I have to reveal the mystery. The Entity was designed
to serve the last group of the alien race that created it.
That group, the ones who built the hexagons, was unable to
transcend through the Hexs. They were sort of contaminated
by the process of building the Hexs. The Entity was supposed
to take care of them, make them happy. But the Entity failed
its mission. The builders were unhappy and at last they
tried to transcend. They fell in the middle, not true
material, not true transcendences. White Death. The Entity
had millions of years of loneliness. Throughout that period,
the Entity figured what it did wrong. When humanity came and
settled, the Entity managed to achieve its goal. Instead of
repeating the mistake of giving what they thought that would
make them happy, The Entity gave the humans what they needed
to be happy. And that's the whole mystery of Cobalt. People
don't want to leave Cobalt. It's all about true happiness.

August 6th-7th, 2002