of the means of production that allows them to take such an unfairshare.”
Aurora sighed. “It’s pretty much the same way all over the galaxy, except
on primitive planets like this one where it is even worse. But the cause of
women’s rights is advancing, and I think that some day we will obtain
equality.”
“So by male control of the economy, what you really mean is that the
men do all thework?”
“Exactly.”
“But the women get all the money.”
“Alas, no. Only 99 percent.”
“Right,” Hamilton nodded, “only 99 percent. And in civilized
Galactic societies, does male control of the military work the same way?” “Yes, they staff every position in every ship and regiment. All we get
to do is decide on war or peace, and then tell them who to attack, when
to attack, when to retreat, and what weapons and tactics they can use. All
the rest is entirely under their control.It’s completelyunfair.” “So today…”
“Some Earthling tank-scrubbers dumped poison into the central plumbing systems of five of our largest fish farms. Over a billion bluebacks worth of capital was destroyed. Naturally, the men were enraged by the loss of their property. Furthermore, unless something was done, the
sabotage could be repeated and our food supply seriously endangered. So
the High Priestess gave Colonel Iskander permission to mobilize his militia to clear the whole inner city of Earthlings. Naturally, to minimize bloodshed she forbade them to use any weapons except disarmers and thumpers. The former only came into play a few times since most of the
Earthlings knew better than to draw arms, and the latter aren’t used until the Earthlings have been warned to evacuate their buildings. It was pretty messy,but overall I would have to say that Iskander’s men acted professionally, and only thirty or forty Earthlings were killed by our forces.” “Professionally? I saw your men do some rather brutal stuff during
Kolta Bruna’s broadcast. How can you excuse that?”
“By necessity. But how can you excuse what your comrades in arms
did today?”
“My comrades? The US Army? Why? What did they do?” “They gunned down several hundred of the Kennewickians whotried
to push through the refugee camp area to enter the United States.” Hamilton hung his head in shame.
“Yes, just a little detail that Kolta Bruna neglected to include in her
galaxywide broadcast.” Aurora walked across the room and activated a
view screen to provide a view of the fish farm area.“But the thing Idon’t
get, is how did five Earthlings manage to enter our fish farm buildings
with sabotage plans in their minds, without someone catching them. They
had to walk right by any number of Minervans. Their thoughts should
have given them awayinstantly.”
Hamilton shrugged. “Maybe some Earthlings are naturally resistant
to mind reading.”
Aurora shook her head. “Not possible. It takes several years of tele-
pathic education in a civilized school before someone can learn how to
deny access to their outer mind. No Earthling has ever had such an education, or could make use of it if it were given to her. And the only other
way to mask someone’s thoughts is with an anti-telepathic brain implant,
but that is far beyond your technology.”
Aurora’s last statement provoked a thought in Hamilton’s brain,
which he instantly tried to hide. It was no use.
The priestess looked at him in disbelief.“You mean you think that the
US Government is buying advanced technology from some Galactic
power and supplying it to the Kennewickian underground? Holy
Minerva! What else do you know?” Her look turned into a stare, and
Hamilton felt her presence enter his mind and start a systematic examination of all of his thoughts.
It wasn’t fair.He hadn’t meant to give the Kennewickian’s secret
away, and actually hedidn’t really know anything. It was just a guess. But
it was probably the right guess, and he had come up with it by reflex in
the presence of a Minervan priestess who instantly realized that it had to
be true. Aurora had tricked him into becoming a traitor! And now here she
was, foraging around his outer mind, examining his every thought in
minute detail. But his psyche still had the little round shield. He charged
her with it, hoping to expel her intruding presence from his brain. It didn’t work. In one swift mind-shattering blow, Aurora’s presence
slapped the shield out of his hands, and Hamilton’s half-grown psyche
found itself sprawled on his mind’s floor disarmed, and looking up in
helpless terror at the angry face of a vengeful and mighty priestess. “Don’t you dare ever try that again,” Aurora said, in the real world. Hamilton was shaking violently, and could not speak. Aurora regarded him silently for several seconds, and then took pity on him. She led him to a couch, and made him sit down, and then sat down herself right
next to him.
“It’s OK,” she said softly, patting him gently on the head. “I won’t
hurt you. Don’t be frightened. I won’t hurt you.”
Gradually, Hamilton’s terror eased, and he found himself able to
speak. “What happened?” he asked.
“You did a very foolish thing,” Aurora kept her voice soft, almost
sympathetic.
Hamilton was still dazed, so Aurora continued.“Hamilton, I gave you
that little shield so you would have some way to defend yourself against
mindviolators like Kolta Bruna. It won’t work against anyone with even
a basic Minervan education, and in trying to use it against me, a Priestess
of the Third Circle, you were like a small boy with a toy disarmer ball
charging a landbattleship.”
“I guess you proved that well enough.”
Aurora stroked his head gently.“Yes, and you could have gotten seriously hurt. Now I’m willing to give you the shield back, but you must
promise never to abuse it again. Will you promisethat?”
Hamilton nodded. “Yeah. OK.”
“So that means that you can never try to use it against any Minervan,
and certainly not me or Danae or Freya. It’s very rude. I saved your life,
you know, so…”
“Huh? You saved my life?”
“Sure. Who do you think it was who gave you the idea to drop your
weapon before it exploded?”
“I thought of that myself!”
“No, that was me. You just accepted my suggestion.”
“Then why didn’t you save the others?”
Aurora shrugged. “I tried. But none of them would listen.” Hamilton was flabbergasted. At the very moment he had been trying
to kill her, Aurora had been trying to save his life!
“That’s right,” the priestess said. “And then I collected you fair and
square. So I’m more than entitled to all of the thoughts in your outer
mind. You need to accept that, otherwise I can’t give you your shield
back.”
Hamilton almost wanted to cry. The situation was so degrading. Yet
Aurora’s denial to him of any privacy in his outer mind was nothing compared to what he might be subjected to from Kolta Bruna or others of her
kind if he didn’t have the shield.
“OK,” he said. “I accept your rules.”
Aurora smiled. “That’s a good boy. Here you go.”
An instant later he felt the return of the shield. Even though he now
knew it would
n’t work against Aurora, having it back made him feel less
defenseless, and it steadied his still-shaky nerves.
“Feel better now?” Aurora asked.
“Yes. Thank you.”
Aurora stood up and started walking around the room. “You know
you shouldn’t feel guilty about giving away the Kennewickians’ secret.
After all, you never really knew it.”
Hamilton just shrugged.
“But what I don’t get,” the priestess went on, “is why you don’t see
that whoever gave them that stuff certainlydidn’t have their best interests
in mind. The action was designed as a provocation to force us to do things
that would make theKennewickians’condition even more miserable than
it alreadywas.”
Hamilton hung his head in his hands. “What are you trying to do to
me, Aurora? Turn me into a traitor?”
“Some of your compatriots already call you that.”
“But I’m not.”
Aurora nodded. “So you can defy the herd opinion. Very good.” “But you would make it true.”
“I’m just trying to get you to see Reason.”
Hamilton mustered defiance. “No. I don’t agree. This wasn’t like the
childmartyr stuff. This was a serious act of resistance.”
“To what purpose?”
“Why to fight back, of course. To try to throw you out by wrecking
your food supply.”
“And why is it necessary for them to throw us out?”
“Because you are their enemy. You’ve taken their town away from
them.”
“So, we are their oppressors because we deny them access to their
town?”
“Yes.”
Aurora arched hereyebrow. “Really? And what then are those who
deny them access to their world?”
Hamilton stood up. “Are you saying that the real enemy of the
Kennewickians is the United States Government?”
Aurora smiled. “Well, duhhh.”
Hamilton folded his arms. “I can’t a ccept that. There may have been
some mistakes, but…”
The priestess cut him off.“Hamilton, these denials are pointless. I can
see that you know the truth. For the sake of your sanity, you need to face
it and admitit.”
Hamilton said nothing, but just stared at the Minervan with sad and
helpless eyes. She was asking him to accept that the cause he had dedicated his life to uphold, the cause for which the members of his platoon
had sacrificed themselves, was a complete fraud. He couldn’t do it. If he
did, what would he have left?
“You would have your mind,” Aurora said softly. “Respect your
mind.”
Chapter 10
The Western Galactic Imperial Spaceliner Esperion entered the Draco system and took a standard orbit around Draco 4.
Dave Christianson gazed out the porthole at the spectacular view of the nightside of the planet. Draco 4 was the capital of the 714th district of the 99th or “Cepheus” province, the center of a miniature empire which itself consisted of some 1,000 worlds. Theplanet’s 43 billion people lived well, and the lights from their innumerable cities shone like a vast assembly of iridescent jewels. Christianson smiled. There would soon be a gnashing of teeth among the unfaithful.
He had obtained passage aboard the Esperion as a student, with plans to enroll in the Department of Joycube Design in one ofDraco’s lower academies. His bluebacks were sufficient for a ticket purchase, and no unacceptable thoughts were detected in his mind by the Weegee pagan priestess who served as ship’s Chaplain. So blueblacks being bluebacks, he had been accepted as a passenger riding in the ships fourth class steerage section.
So far everything had gone according to plan. The Weegees were so arrogant. They never suspected that mere Earthlings were smart enough to obtain modern anti-telepathy technology. But, as promised, the implant had worked like a charm. He was as immune to mind-searches as a Minervan High Priestess.
The ship had been in orbit now for several hours, and all passengers and most of the crew had debarked. Christianson moved quietly through the empty ship’s passageways, heading for the Engineering Section. His training had been thorough. He would know exactly what to do.
The door to Engineering was unlocked. Christianson slipped through the entrance and was gratified to see that the only people present were the Chief Engineer and Chaplain Calliope, who were engaged in intimate talk with each other. How delightful, Christianson thought, a pagan tryst. Hopefully the two lovebirds would be sufficiently distracted by each other not to detect him. Trying not to make a sound, Christianson headed directly toward the Hyper Drive controls.
“Excuse me, sir,” the Chief Engineer said, “but the engineering sec- tion is off limits to passengers.”
The Chief Engineer was about 6’7” tall, and built like a heavyweight prizefighter. He headed towards Christianson in a series of rapid long strides. The thought flashed through the Earthling’s mind that if it came to hand-to-hand, the Engineer probably could easily break him in half. But there would be no hand-to-hand. Christianson reached into his pocket and squeezed as hard as he could on a small prism. The Engineer yelled in agony as the involuntary contraction of his powerful muscles ripped apart his nervous system, and dropped to the floor dead, his eyes bulging from his horribly contorted face.
“What have you done?” the Chaplain screamed. Christianson looked at her and squeezed his prism again. But either because the range was greater, her muscles were weaker, or because he had exhausted most of theprism’s charge on the Engineer, the Chaplain did not die, but only fell to her knees, writhing with pain.
So much the better, Christianson thought. Let her watch.
He turned to the controls and started to activate the Hyper Drive.
From under the weight of a thosand tons of pain, the priestess tried to plead with him.
“No, not the Hyper Drive! If you start it this close to a planet…”
Christianson interrupted her.“It will suck the whole pagan worldinto the ship’s singularity. PraiseJesus.”
Calliope grabbed her golden triangle pendant, closed her eyes, and gritted her teeth, as if she was praying really hard.
Suddenly alarm klaxons rang throughout the ship and knockout gas hissed from the ventilators.
“Too late,” Christianson snickered, and closed the arming switch. “Jesus is Love,” he intoned, touching the start button.
An instant later Draco 4 entered the Hyper Drive’s singularity, and the ship flashed into a nova.
The Esperion nova consumed not only Draco 4, but Draco 1,2,3,5,6, and 7 as well. But the Western Galactic Imperial Navy Battlecruiser Defiant on patrol near Draco 8 detectedCalliope’s distress call, relayed by the Esperion’s superluminal transmitter during the last seconds of its existence. In consequence, Defiant’s captain was able to get his ship’s shields up before the blast wave hit, and the ship and the small WGIN base on Draco 8 were both saved.
A few hours after the disaster, the Captain and hisship’s Chaplain met on Draco 8 with the Base Commander and High Priestess. He handed a small rod to the Commander, who inserted it in a holoplayer. The
image of a small grotesque primitive humanoid in ill-fitting modern clothing appeared, playing at a set of merchant ship Hyper Drive controls. Calliope’s voice filled the room with her agony.“A savage of some kind has broken into the Engineering Section.He’s starting the Hyper Drive. The ship will go nova in seconds. Activate shields! Activate shields!”
Then the savage said: “Jesus is Love,” and the transmission went blank.
The Captain turned to the base High Priestess. “Who is this ‘Jesus,’” he asked.
The High Priestess exchanged somber looks with the Defiant’s Chaplain. “We’ll f
ind out soon enough,” she said.
The Western Galactic Imperial Navy’s 99th Fleet was its southernmost command, responsible for protecting a frontier province which bordered on the galaxy’s most barbaric region. Admiral Phillipus and all the veteran staff at Fleet HQ on Cepheus 6 were used to trouble. But the news today was grim indeed.
He looked around the meeting room table nervously. Seated at the table were not only his own Squadron Commodores and Chaplains, but Pallacina, the Provincial High Priestess, and Marissa, Imperial Governess of 1,000 planets of the First District. All sat in silence, waiting for the even more important attendee who was expected shortly.
A thought from the High Priestess informed the Admiral that the moment was at hand. “All rise,” he said.
The door of the meeting room opened, and as the walls played the WGE Imperial anthem, Princess Minaphera 245th, ruler of the million planets of Cepheus Province and 2nd in line to the Imperial throne, made her stately entrance, followed by her train of advisors and courtiers. The Princess was a young woman in her twenties, and beautiful beyond description. She wore an enchanting blue robe of the latest style, a glowing tiara crown, and a magnificent iridescent triangle pendant adorned her perfect neck. A throne was brought in, and with infinite grace and poise, she sat down in it and crossed her legs.
All present raised their right hand with three fingers extended. “For Reason, Love, and Justice; Everywhere and Forever!” they chanted in unison.
The Princess smiled a radiant smile. “Loyal subjects, please be seat- ed.”
The officers and officials at the table all sat down in their chairs. The Princess’ retinue all sat on the floor at her feet.
The Admiral nervously cleared his throat and faced the Princess. “Your Divine Majesty,” he said. “If you would like chairs or floor cush- ions brought in for your advisors we can…”
The Princess stopped him with a wave of her hand. “That won’t be necessary.” At her nod, one of her courtiers removed her sandals and began placing them on a small velvet pedestal. However, apparently through nervousness, he let one of the shoes slip from his fingers and it fell off the pedestal to the floor. The Princess frowned and touched her pendant, and instantly the offending courtier disappeared in a photolysis flash. One of the other courtiers dashed forward to complete the job of enshrining the sandals.
The Holy Land: Fanatical Earthling planet assassins are spreading chaos through the galaxy. Is there any nice way to stop them? Page 9