Timepiece

by Brian N Ball

  “I haven’t the rhymes,” said Sokutu. “I’d write an elegy, but is Ellison a fit subject for elegiac verse?” “Del, I hate to think of it,” said the girl. “Landing there—for that’s what you want, isn’t it?”

  Del let them talk. They had revolved the questions around endlessly. Garvin called to them:

  “We’re going to land just there.”

  He had made a mock-up of the planet from the information the sensors had picked up.

  “It’s a metaphysical problem,” said Sokutu. “You see, Ellison may or may not qualify for an elegy. He may be said not to exist at all, or alternatively, he may be said to be omnipresent in a particular series of dimensional forms. And if he's interleaved amongst a series of hypercubes, who's to decide on the matter of his qualification for a funerary oration?”

  ‘There’s something coming through now,” said Del.

  The computers had taken over. They were programmed to scan the Planet and, if necessary, send out high-powered probes to check the ship's own sensors' readings. There was a burst of noise from the console. A chatter of information came through. Radiation types and levels from the yellow suns. The two tiny satellites, both of them lifeless and unimportant. The Planet. Its topography, geography, geology. The gaseous envelope. All agreed with the Galactic Trust reports. On the face of it, the Planet was harmless, habitable, even agreeable.

  “Not too much on captured particles,” said Garvin. “Nor—nor the central core. But that could be the distance.”

  “What's this?” said Suzanne Rosetti.

  They looked at the length of tape. Garvin flicked on the repeater. Frantically he plunged levers and buttons.

  “It can't be!”

  Del took the tape. “A disc!”

  They looked at one another. Garvin quickly set up the simulator. The Planet swam onto the screen, a blue-tinged place bathed in the light of two suns. It was disc-shaped.

  “These readings!” said Garvin. “They must be wrong!”

  ‘The computers?” asked Del. They all knew what was in his mind.

  “Nothing wrong with them,” said Garvin. “The freak temporal effects we were getting vanished as soon as we switched over to conventional propulsion.”

  He re-engaged the main computer after clearing the simulated image of the uncanny disc.

  “Sure?” said Sokutu. “Couldn’t Ellison be—”

  “Oh no!” said the girl quietly. “Charlie couldn’t be trapped in the ship! It isn’t him that’s causing this freak reading?”

  “No,” said Garvin. “He’s gone. When we slipped out of hyperspace we said our farewells to Charlie Ellison. We’ll have to face it: the Forever Planet’s flat.” “Probes went out ten seconds ago,” said Garvin.

  Del nodded. Garvin was efficient. Every action of his was marked now with economy. There would be results.

  “This image we saw,” said Henry Sokutu. “I am right in thinking it’s only a simulation?”

  “Right,” said Garvin, restraining with an effort his impatience. “Were too far for accurate direct observation using optics.”

  “But it’s impossible—a planetary form this size and a disc!” said the fat man.

  “There are others,” said the girl. “I know about this,” she explained to Garvin. “There have been similar cases of irregular shapes amongst biggish planetary bodies.”

  “But spinning about an axis,” said Del. “Doesn’t that set up colossal strains?”

  Garvin shrugged. ‘We have a check coming up.” “There was no mention of this irregularity in the Trust records,” persisted Henry Sokutu. “Maybe this is just one more quirk of this strange Planet.”

  “Poor Ellison,” said the girl.

  Henry Sokutu looked at her. “Indeed yes! Poor Charlie Ellison! Missing this triumph! And this strange phenomenon.” He remembered something, and a wonderful smile came over his face. “Doubly, trebly tragic!”

  ‘Why?” asked Del.

  “Charlie had a secret belief—did you know he was a Flat-Earther?”

  What was Sokutu talking about? Del listened to the erudite half-comic explanation. It seemed that a semi-mystical cult still believed that Sol was flat. An ancient belief, one that defied all attempts on the part of the autocratic regimes of the early Third Millennium dynasties to eradicate it; for it was dangerous. “Dangerous?” asked Del.

  “Yes. Charlie died for a principle. He believed you shouldn't hold a theory unless you were prepared to test it. He'd have walked to the edge of a flat earth. He went into the drive chamber to prove himself right. He’s immortal because he was too self-opinionated to modify his beliefs.”

  “And why should he be here now?”

  “Observe,” said Henry Sokutu. He pressed the “repeat” button on the console. The disc swam into view. “A flat earth.” The girl held onto each word:

  “You're saying anything—anything—can come true?”

  Henry Sokutu gestured largely, his personality expanding to match the intensity of the girl's interest. “An infinite Universe,” he said. “Infinite, my dear. Yes. A million times, yes!”

  What depths was she searching? What glittered in front of her staring eyes? Del felt again the surge of power the girl radiated.

  “Evaluation complete,” suavely suggested the machine. The probes had reported. The data they had amassed had been processed.

  “Now we’ll know,” said the girl. “I didn't believe we’d reach it—Del, we will see the Planet, won't we?”

  “Ready?” asked Garvin.

  ‘Wait,” said Del. “The probes, Garv. How accurate are they?”

  “They have the same low-powered scanners that were using from the ship. But they’ll be much nearer

  the Planet. Another thing: originally, the probes were used as ancillary landing equipment, and the safety factor in all this kind of equipment is fantastic. They had to be so accurate, according to safety board specifications, that landing and take-off were all but impossible if all the regulations were complied with/'

  “You're the expert,” said Del. “And if you are satisfied?”

  Garvin didn’t answer.

  There was a clearing of an electronic larynx, and the report began:

  “All instruments reporting accurately. Full test routine on four systems completed. Probes confirm readings recorded from main vessel systems. Field-warp variations of Trebitchkov type. Planet has irregular gravitational fields—”

  Suzanne Rosetti had reached forward and stopped the flat voice. The others waited.

  “It doesn’t say anything about the shape!”

  “Field-warp,” said Garvin. ‘“That could be it, Suzanne. Let’s hear it all.” He was making a big effort to be patient with the excited girl.

  “Fluctuating gravitational fields!” said Henry Sokutu. “This could be Smith’s message!”

  “Let’s hear the rest of the report,” said Del. Ideas were beginning to shape themselves in his mind. He could see that Garvin and Henry Sokutu were going through the same process of absorption and coordination: Ellison’s launching into hyperspace; the freak disc-shaped Planet; the presence of a state of gravitational flux in their sector of the Universe; and the fragments of the Commander’s report, with its halfhints of a terrifying mystery.

  “—formed by its six gravitational cores. Interlocking of–”

  “Six cores!” exploded Henry Sokutu. “Impossible!”

  The machine began again:

  “Interlocking of fields from cores produces field-warp. Result is variable gravitational fields. Present gravitational field suggests planet has shape of disc. Further gravitational changes expected shortly as result of harmonic equipoise of series of cores with random fluctuation element. So far, insufficient data to explain the configuration of the fluctuations. Suggest-”

  It was Henry Sokutu who interrupted the even flow:

  ‘What kind of place is this?” he said. “Six cores and a variable gravitational field!”

  “It makes
some kind of sense,” said Garvin. “Remember the Commanders words?”

  “ ‘A sexagesimal pattern’!” said Sokutu. “How in the name of infinity can that occur in any universe!”

  “Not by chance,” said Del. There were so many factors now.

  “The legends were true,” said Suzanne Rosetti. “Del, it’s the place where time can hold still! It must be!”

  “And not by chance, Del.” Henry Sokutu looked at the others gravely. “Del has it—this Planet isn’t a chance occurrence.”

  “We have to land,” said Garvin.

  Nobody argued. “You can fix the inhibitor the Trust fitted?”

  Garvin grinned. “I’ve been working on it since the day I first saw the ship.”

  “And?”

  “Yes. Shall we listen to the report?”

  “Something built the Planet!” whispered Suzanne. “It has to be like that!”

  “Suggest fluctuations in gravitational fields may bring planet a variety of irregular and regular gravitational shapes,” went on the machine. There was a ghost of a bronchitic chuckle. “Planet may have field appropriate to a body with physical shape of a cylinder. A pyramid.” There was a definite note of amuse-

  ment. “Even a dodecahedron.” A green-bronze shape scuttled from its slot on some self-appointed errand. “Even a stellated icosahedron I”

  “And its regular shape? Its constant physical form?” said Garvin.

  “A very ordinary sphere,” assured the machine. “All sighting reports obtained from probes suggest a globe with the usual flattening at poles.”

  “Wait!” said Garvin. He spoke to Del. “The computers will have worked out a theory to account for the Planet.”

  ‘"Let’s hear it,” said Del.

  “No.” Henry Sokutu spoke with an unaccustomed seriousness. “Garvin’s right. We don’t want to hear any theories yet”

  “They’ll prejudge issues for us?” said Del, knowing the two men were right. Computers could act only on information; there was an area inside the human mind that could still not be matched by mechanical aids.

  “Well rely on intuition,” agreed Henry Sokutu. “Or at least we’ll admit it first.”

  The green-bronze shape of the small robot brushed against the girl. She shivered. It made a few adjustments to the console and returned to its rack.

  “Look,” said Garvin.

  They looked at the optical images sent back by the probes. The Forever Planet swam across the skies, a mantle of cloud hanging like a shawl, a peaceful sight: but with a lonely and waiting quality.

  “A globe,” said Del. “Flattened slightly at the poles.”

  “With the gravitational field of a cube,” said Garvin. “Look at the field readings.” They watched the simulated picture as its components flashed into the screens. The field readings swung through a million crazy arcs. Then a sharp-edged cube rode into the screen.

  “A planet with a variable gravitational field!* said-Henry Sokutu. “What is it?*

  In silence the four watchers compared the two images, the unclear visual sightings of^the waiting globe; and the representation of what the planet would look like if only its fields were taken into account

  Chapter Thirteen

  “What is it?” asked Henry Sokutu again. “We came to look for a puzzle in time, and we’ve found a gravitational freak. We were looking for a metaphysical conundrum, and we've discovered a planetary paradox.”

  “The Report from Time,” said the girl. “Where does it fit in?”

  “Garvin?” asked Del. More and more they were turning to the younger man.

  “Whatever we've found, it's the greatest discovery since the complex of Cygnus was investigated—its stranger than the mind bending crystals on BUI 2300, weirder than the sense-swimmers on the micro-worlds in Sector ZI 68.”

  “Don’t forget the crystallized microbes on the Warped World,” said Henry Sokutu. “I enjoyed looking at them! Though it wasn’t a genuine Warp,” he said dreamily. “More of a kinetic freak.” He dropped his lazy manner. “No, Garvin, you’re far away from the truth.”

  “What is the truth?” asked Suzanne Rosetti.

  “Smith knew it,” said Sokutu. “He tried to express it, but he hadn’t the concepts. He literally didn’t know what he was trying to say. There was nothing in his

  experience that compared with the strangeness he met.”

  “What are you saying?” said Del. Again, he felt the cold touch of premonition that had been his ghostly companion during the last days.

  “All right,” said Garvin, “he'd never come across fluctuations in gravity before.”

  “And time,” added the girl. “Time held still —remember, Garvin?”

  “Not ever,” agreed Henry Sokutu. “Not in his Universe.”

  There was a silence as the others gathered in his meaning.

  “Extra-Universal!” said Del.

  “From beyond our Universe!” said Garvin. 'It has to be! Then—then, Del, we haven't seen—heard— begun to know about—Henry!” he was shouting in his excitement. “We haven’t begun to know about the Planet yet! The gravitational freaks are—”

  “—just a beginning,” completed the girl, her eyes shining with the wonder of the thought.

  “You're guessing?” said Del. He felt uneasy.

  The bombastic personality filled the cabin:

  “Guessing! No! I'm using the one faculty that sets me apart from tiny men and women like the rest of you! I’m using my intuition, Del!”

  “We'll see how it compares with the computer's evaluation,” said Del. “Then we'll decide what to do.”

  “Black Shield Singularity reported by probes,” informed the computer. “Evidence of electron spiral into nuclei: points to artificial state induced by external agency. Further evidence of external agency is equipoise of gravitational cores. Suggests possibility of experiments in dimension control. Query: Is this a sign of previous civilization?” The machine waited politely for comment.

  “Agreement so far,” said Henry Sokutu. “But these machines tend to be over-cautious.”

  “Evaluate the data on the cores,” said Garvin.

  “Connected with possible dimension experiments,” said the machine. “On data so far received, they are white dwarf waste. Suggest white dwarf material brought to subject planet as energy source. Residue becomes high-density mass. Waste material may be under surface of planet, or circling as satellites.” The machine waited again.

  “An advanced civilization interested in dimensional research,” said Garvin. ‘Its beginning to fit together.”

  “But residual material floating about under the surface—or in a series of satellites!” Suzanne Rosetti said.

  “Equipoise,” said Garvin. “That's the key. There's a pattern in the distribution of the cores. Whether they're strung out in the troposphere, or whether they’re underneath the surface doesn't matter. The distribution isn’t random—that's what is important ”

  “Continue?” suggested the machine.

  “Do,” said Henry Sokutu.

  “Suggest long-range survey by ship. Supplementary information from probes. Return after twenty-four hours.”

  “Reasons?” asked Garvin.

  “Danger,” said the machine succinctly. “Immediate and primary danger of gravitational imbalance. Secondary danger, unknown radiation hazards. Third, encounter with unknown agencies with advanced scientific techniques. Repeat: suggest return after long-range survey.”

  “A sensible notion,” said Henry Sokutu. “The best idea I've heard of for some time.”

  “Del?” said the girl.

  “You can’t want to return without a thorough investigation!” said Garvin.

  “Of course not,” Henry Sokutu said. “Del needs the chance to prove himself.” He ambled from the room. “I'm tired. Call me when our fate is decided. Let the machine give you a full analysis.” He turned back and smiled. “We all need the chance to prove something on the Forever Planet,” he sa
id gently.

  “Second line of reasoning?” suggested the computer.

  Del knocked the controls. “We'll hear it later. Garvin, Suzanne,” he went on: “Henry's right when he says we've got to go on. Well follow Smith and land on the Planet.”

  “I didn't think you'd want to back down,” said Garvin.

  “Not, Garv, because you say so. And not because I need to prove my own capacities. Nor are we going on just to write finis to a physical or metaphysical puzzle. Not even to justify the efforts we've all made so far. Ellison's death, if it is that, doesn't affect us either. And we're not reacting against the caution the computer advises. No machine is going to overrule any of us.” He looked at the hazy outline of the planet, the optical image sent back by the hastening probes. The cloud systems spiralled in feathery masses, and the shadows cast by the light of the two suns turned it into a curious striped thing. “I suppose we're going on for the same reason that Ellison walked into the drive chamber. Someone's got to be the first to jump over the edge of reason.”

  Garvin and the girl listened and remained silent, but a voice boomed into the cabin to shatter their calm:

  “Beware the jealousy of the gods!” Henry Sokutu's voice bellowed. “Pride, Del, pride! Were tempting our fate too far!” His voice became conversational “I couldn't resist listening in, Del, Suzanne, Garv—and what a tremendous thrill it was to hear Del speak in this way! But is it wise? We've seen the place! We've proved its existence! Surely now, if we return, there’ll be more expeditions? Let’s take back the data we have and tell the human race that we re standing on the edge of the greatest discovery of all time!”