She remained quiet on the transport ride back to their zone. While Richard and Archie talked about many different subjects, Nicole tried to wrestle with the growing fear inside her. An inner voice, one that she had not heard for years, was telling her that she would never see Richard again after tomorrow. Is this perhaps some peculiar reaction on my part? she asked herself critically. Am I having trouble letting Richard be the hero?
The strength of the premonition grew, despite Nicole's attempts to combat it. She remembered a terrible night many, many years earlier, when she had been in her bedroom in the little house in Chilly-Mazarin. Nicole had awakened screaming from a violent and vivid nightmare. "Mommy is dead," the ten-year-old girl had cried.
Her father had tried to console her and had explained that her mother was just away on a trip visiting her family in the Ivory Coast. The telegram announcing her mother's death had arrived at the house seven hours later.
"If you don't have any weapons stockpiled and no trained soldiers," Richard was now saying, "how in the world can you prepare for a war fast enough to defend yourself?"
"I cannot tell you that," Archie replied. "But believe me, I know for a fact that a conflict at this time between our two species could result in the total annihilation of the human civilization in Rama."
Nicole could not calm her tormented soul. No matter how many times she told herself she was overreacting, the premonitory fear did not diminish. She reached over and took Richard's hand. He wrapped his fingers through hers and continued his conversation with Archie.
Nicole gazed intently at him. I am proud of you, Richard, she thought, but I am also scared. And I am not yet ready to say good-bye,
It was very late when Nicole went to bed. She had awakened Ellie gently, without disturbing Nikki and the Watanabe twins, who were sleeping in the Wakefield house so that Patrick and Nai could have their wedding night alone. Ellie, of course, had had many questions. Richard and Nicole had explained the plan, including everything important they had learned from Archie and the Chief Optimizer earlier in the evening. Ellie had been fearful, but had finally agreed that Nikki and she would accompany Richard and Archie the next day.
Nicole could not fall into a deep sleep. After tossing and turning for an hour, she began a sequence of short, chaotic dreams. In her final dream Nicole was again seven years old back in the Ivory Coast, in the middle of her Poro ceremony. She was half naked out in the water, with the lioness prowling around the perimeter of the pond. Little Nicole took a deep breath and dove under the water. When she surfaced, Richard was standing on the shore where the lioness had been. It was a young Richard smiling at her initially, but as Nicole watched, he aged rapidly and became the same Richard who was beside her that moment in the bed. She heard Omeh's voice in her ear. "Look carefully, Ronata," the voice said. "And remember…"
Nicole woke up. Richard was sleeping peacefully. She sat up in the bed and tapped on the wall one time. A solitary firefly appeared in the doorway, shining some light into the bedroom. Nicole stared at her husband. She looked at his hair and beard, gray from age, and remembered them when they had been black. She recalled fondly his ardor and humor during their courtship in New York. Nicole grimaced, took a deep breath, and kissed her index finger. She placed the finger on Richard's lips. He did not stir. Nicole sat quietly for several more minutes, studying every feature of her husband's face. Soft tears flowed down her cheeks and dropped from her chin onto the sheets. "I love you, Richard," she said.
WAR IN RAMA
1
REPORT #319
Time of Transmission: 156 307 872 574.2009
Time Since First-Stage Alert: 111.9766
References:
Node 23-419
Spacecraft
947
Spacefarers
47 249
(A & B)
32 806
2 666
During the last interval the structure and order in the spacefaring communities inside the spacecraft have continued to disintegrate. Despite the warnings of the octospiders (Spacefarers #2 666) and their laudable attempts to avoid a broad conflict with the humans (#32 806), it is now even more likely that a disastrous war between the two species, which could leave only a few survivors, may take place in the next several intervals. The situation therefore meets all the prerequisite conditions for a Stage 2 intercession.
Prior intercessionary activity has been declared a failure, primarily because the more aggressive of the two species, the humans, are fundamentally insensitive to the entire range of subtle intercessionary techniques. Only a few of the humans have responded to the many attempts to alter their hostile behavior, and those who did react were unable to stop the genocide of the avians and sessiles (#47 249, A & B) perpetrated by their rulers.
The humans are organized in the rigid, hierarchical manner often observed in prespacefaring species. They continue to be dominated by a leadership whose focus is the retention of personal power. The welfare of the human community and even its survival are subordinated in the implicit objective function of the current human leaders to the continuation of a political system which gives them absolute authority. There is consequently little likelihood that the threatened expanded conflict between the humans and the octospiders can be avoided by any logical appeals.
A small cadre of humans, including almost all of the family that lived at the Node for over a year, remains in residence in the main octospider city. Their interaction with their hosts has demonstrated that it is possible for the two species to live together in harmony. Recently a mixed delegation of those humans and one octospider have decided to make a concerted effort to prevent a full-scale interspecies war by contacting the leaders of the human colony directly. However, the probability that this delegation will be successful is very low.
Thus far the octospiders have taken no overt hostile action. Nevertheless, they have begun the process of preparing for a war against the humans. Although they will fight only if they determine that the survival of their community is in jeopardy, the advanced biological capabilities of the octospiders makes the outcome of such a war a foregone conclusion.
What is not certain is how the humans will react once the conflict escalates and they suffer heavy losses. It is possible that the war might terminate quickly and, in time, the two surviving communities might again reach a near equilibrium status. Based on the available observational data on the humans, however, there is a nontrivial probability that this species will continue the battle until most or all of them perish. Such an outcome would destroy all the vestiges of at least one of the two spacefaring societies remaining in the spacecraft. To preclude such a disadvantageous result for the project, consideration of a Stage 2 intercession is recommended.
2
Nicole was awakened by the sound of the three children playing in the living room. As she was slipping on her robe, Ellie came to the door of the bedroom and asked if she had seen Nikki's favorite doll. "I think it's under her bed," Nicole replied.
Ellie returned to her packing, Nicole could hear Richard in the bathroom. It won't be long now, she was thinking when her granddaughter suddenly appeared in the doorway. "Mommy and I are leaving, Nonni," the little girl said with a smile. "We're going to see Daddy."
Nicole opened her arms and the little girl ran over for a hug. "I know, darling," Nicole said. She held the girl tightly in her arms and then began to stroke her hair. "I will miss you, Nikki," she said.
A few seconds later the Watanabe twins both bounded into the room. "I'm hungry, Mrs. Wakefield," Galileo said.
"Me too," Kepler added."
Nicole reluctantly released her granddaughter and started walking across the bedroom. "All right, boys," she said. "I'll have your breakfast in a few minutes."
When the three children were almost finished eating, Max, Eponine, and Marius arrived at the door. "Guess what, Uncle Max," Nikki said before Nicole had even had a chance to greet the Pucketts. "I'm going to see my daddy."
> The four hours flew by quickly. Richard and Nicole explained everything twice, first to Max and Eponine and then to the newlyweds, both of whom were still radiant from the pleasures of their wedding night. As the time neared for the departure of Richard, Ellie, and Nikki, the excitement and energy that had characterized the morning conversation began to wane. Butterflies started fluttering in Nicole's stomach.
Max was the first to say good-bye. "Come over here, Princess," he said to Nikki, "and give your Uncle Max a kiss." The girl obediently followed directions. Max then stood up and crossed the room to where Ellie was talking with her mother. 'Take care of that little girl, Ellie," he said, embracing her, "and don't let the bastards get away with anything." Max shook hands with Richard and then called the Watanabe twins to join him outside.
The mood in the room was swiftly altered. Despite her promise to herself that she would remain calm, Nicole felt a surge of panic as she suddenly realized that she had only a few minutes to complete her farewells. Patrick, Nai, Benjy, and Eponine had followed Max's cue and were hugging the departing trio.
Nicole tried to embrace Nikki again, but the little girl scurried away, running outside to play with the twins. Ellie finished saying good-bye to Eponine and turned to Nicole. "I will miss you, Mother," she said brightly. "I love you very much."
Nicole struggled to maintain her emotional equilibrium. "I couldn't have asked for a better daughter," she said. While the two women hugged, Nicole spoke softly in her daughter's ear. "Be careful," she said. 'There's a lot at stake."
Ellie pulled away and looked in her mother's eyes. She took a deep breath. "I know, Mother," she said somberly, "and it frightens me, I hope I don't disappoint—"
"You won't," Nicole said lightly, patting her daughter's shoulders. "Just remember what the cricket said in Pinocchio."
Ellie smiled. "And always let your conscience be your guide."
"Archie's here!" Nicole heard Nikki shout. She looked around for her husband. Where's Richard? she thought in a fright. I haven't said good-bye. Ellie passed by her quickly, headed for the door carrying two packs on her back.
Nicole could hardly breathe. She heard Patrick say, "Where's Uncle Richard?" and a voice from the study reply, "I'm back here."
She ran down the hall to the study. Richard was sitting on the floor amid electronic components and his own open backpack. Nicole stood in the doorway for a second, catching her breath.
Richard heard her behind him and turned around. "Oh, hi, darling," he said nonchalantly. "I'm still trying to figure out how many backup components I should take for my translators."
"Archie's here," Nicole said quietly.
Richard glanced at his watch. "I guess it's time to go," he said. He picked up a handful of electronic parts and stuffed them into his backpack. Then he stood up and walked toward Nicole.
"Uncle Richard," Patrick yelled.
"I'm coming," Richard shouted. "Just a minute."
Nicole began to tremble the moment Richard put his arms around her. "Hey," he said, "it's all right… We've been apart before."
The fear inside Nicole had become so strong that she could not speak. She tried desperately to be brave, but it was impossible. She knew that this was the last time she would ever touch her husband.
She put one hand behind Richard's head and pulled away slightly so that she could kiss him. Nicole wanted to stop time, to make this one moment last an eternity. Her eyes took a photograph of Richard's face, and she kissed him gently on the lips.
"I love you, Nicole," he said.
For an instant she didn't think she was going to be able to reply. "I love you too," she finally managed to say.
He hoisted his backpack and gave a little wave. Nicole stood in the doorway and watched him walk toward the door. Remember, she heard Omeh's voice say inside her head.
Nikki could hardly believe her good fortune. There in front of her, barely outside the gates of the Emerald City, an ostrichsaur was waiting for them, just as Archie had said. She moved about impatiently as her mother zipped her coat. "Can I feed it, Mother?" she said. "Can I? Can I?"
Even with the ostrichsaur sitting on the ground, Richard had to help Nikki mount the animal. "Thank you, Boobah," the girl said when she was comfortably nestled in the bowl.
'The timing has been worked out very carefully," Archie told Richard and Ellie while they were moving along the path through the forest. "We will arrive at the camp when all the troops are starting breakfast. That way everyone will see us."
"How will we know precisely when to appear?" Richard asked.
"Some of the quadroids are being managed from the far northern fields. Soon after the first soldiers are awake and are moving around outside their tents, your avian friend Timmy, carrying a written announcement of our imminent arrival, will fly over their heads in the dark. Our message will indicate that we will be preceded by the fireflies and that we will be waving a white flag, as you suggested."
Nikki noticed some strange eyes looking out at them from the dark of the forest. "Isn't this fun?" she said to her mother. Ellie did not respond.
Archie stopped the ostrichsaur about a kilometer south of the human camp. The lanterns and other lights outside the distant tents in front of them looked like stars twinkling in the night. "Timmy should be dropping our message just about now," Archie said.
They had been moving cautiously in the dark for several hours, not wanting to use the fireflies because of the possibility that they might be noticed too early. Nikki was sleeping peacefully, her head in her mother's lap. Both Richard and Ellie were tense. "What are we going to do," Richard had inquired before they stopped, "if the troops fire on us before we can say anything?"
"We'll turn around and retreat as fast as we can," Archie had replied.
"And what happens if they come after us with the helicopters and the searchlights?" Ellie had asked.
"At full speed it will take the ostrichsaur almost four wodens to reach the forest," Archie had said.
Timmy returned to the group and reported, in a brief jabber and color conversation with Archie, that he had accomplished his mission. Richard and Timmy then said farewell to each other. The avian's large eyes expressed an emotion Richard had not seen before as Richard rubbed his underbelly. A few moments later, as Timmy flew away in the direction of the Emerald City, a pair of fireflies ignited beside the path and then headed in the direction of the human camp. Richard led the procession, clutching the white flag in his right hand. The ostrichsaur followed about fifty meters behind carrying Ellie, Archie, and the sleeping child.
Richard could see the soldiers with his binoculars when their party was about four hundred meters away. The troops were standing around, looking in their general direction. Richard counted twenty-six of them altogether, including three with rifles poised and another pair scanning the darkness with binoculars.
As planned, Ellie, Nikki, and Archie dismounted when they were about two hundred meters from the camp. The ostrichsaur was sent back while the four of them walked toward the human soldiers. Nikki, who had not been ready to awaken, complained at first but became quiet when she sensed the importance of her mother's request to remain silent.
Archie walked between the two adult humans. Nikki was holding her mother's hand and scampering to keep up with the pace. "Hello, there," Richard shouted when he thought he was within earshot. "This is Richard Wakefield. We come in peace." He waved the white flag vigorously. "I am with my daughter Ellie, my granddaughter Nikki, and an octospider representative."
They must have been an amazing sight for the soldiers, none of whom had ever seen an octospider before. With the fireflies hovering over the heads of the troops, Richard and his party emerged from the Raman dark.
One of the soldiers stepped forward. "I am Captain Enrico Pioggi," he said, "the commanding officer of this camp. I accept your surrender on behalf of the armed forces of New Eden."
Because the announcement of their impending arrival had been delivered to t
he camp less than half an hour earlier, the New Eden chain of command had not had time to formulate a plan of what to do with the prisoners. As soon as he had confirmed that a party of a man, a woman, a child, and an alien octospider were indeed approaching his camp, Captain Pioggi had again radioed the front headquarters in New York and requested instructions on how to proceed. The colonel in charge of the campaign told him to "secure the prisoners" and "stand by for further orders."
Richard had anticipated that none of the officers would be willing to take any definitive action until Nakamura himself had been consulted. He had told Archie, during their long ride on the ostrichsaur, that it would be important to use whatever time they might have with the soldiers in the camp to start rebutting the propaganda that the New Eden government was spreading.
"This creature," Richard said in a loud voice after the prisoners had been searched and the curious troops were milling around them, "is what we call an octospider. All octospiders are very intelligent—in some ways more intelligent than we are—and about fifteen thousand of them live in the Southern Hemicylinder, which extends from here to the base of the south polar bowl. My family and I have been living in their realm for over a year—of our own choice, I might add—and we have found the octospiders to be moral and peace-loving. My daughter Ellie and I have come forward with this octospider representative, whom we call Archie, to try to find some way of stopping a military confrontation between our two species."
"Aren't you Dr. Robert Turner's wife?" said one of the troops to Ellie. "The one who was kidnapped by the octospiders?"
Rama: The Omnibus Page 154