“We are at the beginning of what could become a momentous occasion. Ser Glide, we will make an offer for Shen Ark—the Shen starship—with all its equipment, support materiel, ingots of various ores, spare parts, shuttles and technology. The entire set. You can add training, knowledge transfer, and so forth. Representatives of the English Government are here to help establish our bona fides, and to provide guidance to you as and when required. Why do we want your starship? New Rats are at risk, here on Earth. Most humans do not accept us, and a large minority want to eliminate us as some kind of vermin. Most humans object strenuously—whether here, in Europe, or elsewhere—to any legislation which gives or establishes additional rights for New Rats. Also, we are driven—it is in our DNA, it is our destiny, if you like—to reach out to space. Our initial assessment of Shen Ark confirms it can accommodate all New Rats, New Mice, and one or two minor groups—even a number of humans, who may wish to accompany us. We are interested purchasers. Ser Glide, can you please confirm, for the record, that Shen are interested in this sale?”
“Your Highness, we Shen do not have plans for any further space travel. We’re an exhausted people, and, as you know, there are very few of us left. So yes, we’re interested in this sale and I’ve been authorized to enter into preliminary negotiations with you. I must state for the record that there is one condition which is not negotiable.”
Sam 32nd’s ears stiffened. “Ser Glide—what is this condition?”
“Shen have one request of the purchaser. We have, in stasis, a large number of Shen eggs. We can’t allow them to hatch on Shen Ark; that would be entirely unsuitable. We cannot land them here, on Earth. Firstly, we are too few to care for hatchlings. Secondly, this planet is not entirely suitable. No, it is not a criticism of anyone. Simply put, there are trace elements—probably pollution from centuries past—in the atmosphere, which are inimical to the wellbeing of all Shen. We could not, under those circumstances, hatch our eggs here. We ourselves have been adversely affected by these trace elements. Thirdly, of course, we don’t know how humans would react if we were to hatch half a million Shen.”
“And your request?” prompted Sam 32nd.
“The purchaser must agree to take these Shen eggs to our last home, to the planet we call Shen II. Our people there will hatch them, care for them. We’ll send our Navigator with you, perhaps one or two other Shen, younger ones who still have energy, to guide you, and to liaise with our Shen race.”
“I believe we can accept your condition. Is there anything else?”
One of the English Cabinet Members tapped the table. Freddie checked the list and saw it was the Lord Chancellor, Sir Chris Reston. Sam 32nd acknowledged the interruption.
“Yes, Sir Chris?”
The Lord Chancellor frowned, apparently at this unwarranted level of familiarity, and his knuckles whitened as he gripped his pencil. “Well, it goes without saying—although obviously I need to say it. Why should you animals,” his lip curled, “be permitted to acquire this treasure trove of alien engineering?”
His companion cautioned him. Freddie checked his list of names. It was Lord Chauncy, the deputy Prime Minister. “Chris—that is not an issue. The PM said—”
“Stuff what the—”
“Chris, the PM directed me to ensure any dealings between Shen and New Rats were all above board. Such is equally your instruction. You know Shen technology is proscribed by the UN, and we are signatories to the Shen-UN treaty. Additionally, you know we cannot readily raise the amount Shen would ask of us. Even if we could both change the law and raise the funds, our electorates would vote out our English Party at the next election and probably would continue to do so for the next hundred years.” Lord Chauncy looked up at Sam 32nd. “I apologize for the interruption.”
Everyone tried to ignore the almost apoplectic Lord Chancellor. Ser Glide frowned and then decided to comment. “Gentle people, believe me: the cost we would set for any human nation would indeed be more than it—or any group of nations—could afford. We have protected your world from our technology, and will continue to do so. For New Rats and their associates, who plan to depart the planet and thus take the technology with them, we can agree a suitable price. Finally, I am sure no human nation would accept the undertaking I mentioned. ”
“Thank you, Ser Glide, for clarifying your position,” said His Highness. “I assume the English representatives here accept the Shen position?”
Lord Chauncy spoke up. “Ser Glide, Your Highness. Yes, we fully understand. We tried to initiate negotiations some years ago and were very politely rebuffed by Shen representatives. We understand the Eastern Bloc also was rebuffed when their representatives made an approach. Until now, no one else has offered to deal with Shen in this matter.”
“Good. Lord Chancellor, I request that you either agree to address matters as directed by your PM, or withdraw from this and subsequent meetings?” Sam 32nd raised his head, waiting for an answer.
“I’ll be damned if I’ll agree. No, I’ll not be further involved in this unseemly circus. Talking rats, indeed.” He shook off his companion’s restraining hand. The pencil snapped. “No, I don’t care what the PM said. As far as I’m concerned, this meeting is over, finished.” He threw the broken pencil pieces onto the table and stood. No one prevented his departure.
“I think we all need to relax for a few minutes. My staff will bring in refreshments. Lord Chauncy, do you need to contact the Prime Minister?” said Sam 32nd.
“Thank you,” said Lord Chauncy. “The PM suspected this might happen, and I daresay the Lord Chancellor’s giving him an earful about now. My instructions are to continue our support of both you and the Shen in these negotiations.”
The meeting broke up as refreshments were brought in by a small team of Rats. Freddie noted the Rats were supervised by a human, who fussed and ensured various protocols were followed.
“Good to see you here, Dr. Jones,” boomed a voice in Freddie’s ear. “And congratulations, again.”
“Professor Merkin,” Freddie acknowledged the senior professor. “Thank you. I think His Highness is very effective at springing surprises. At least he totally surprised me.”
“He knew you were in that state between completion of your studies and deciding your next step. We were wondering what you would do, as well. Very fine work, very thorough. Beyond most of us, if the truth be known.” They were joined by another human. “And have you met Sir Rosco? He’s with the Bank of England.”
Freddie and the Bank representative exchanged greetings. Sir Rosco held a senior position, reporting directly to the Bank’s Governor, on special projects. Sir Rosco explained to Freddie: “Yes, we regard Shen as one of our very special projects. When they first arrived, they deposited substantial quantities of their precious metals with us in order to establish at least their financial bona fides. While the Bank of England does not extend banking services to members of the public, we regarded Shen as a state. I know it’s contradictory—stateless refugees do not have a state, by definition. Shen have a home, they had negotiated a very long lease on their mountain-top, so we decided to class them simply as refugees. But not poor refugees. We’ve taken care of their banking needs ever since.”
“This is very new to me. A far cry from my studies. I’ve no idea what the terms of this purchase will be.”
Sir Rosco laughed gently. “Neither do we. We’re breaking new ground, all of us. I understand negotiations may take some years to conclude, as the purchase process will include verification of Shen technology. You’ll hold a key position in assessing and confirming their technology. You’ll become one of the few Shen space technology subject matter experts outside the Shen.”
Sam 32nd had silently joined the group, as had Ser Glide. “Indeed,” confirmed His Highness. “It’ll be a challenge for all of us. Freddie, I must apologise for springing my surprise on you. I didn’t have time for prolonged discussion and negotiation phases. We regard you as family, and your family needs you.”
“Sir, I’m honoured. I just hope I can live up to expectations. My mind has still not wrapped itself around the full ramifications.”
Ser Glide said, “Shen will fully support you, Dr. Freddie. You’ll need to board Shen Ark as soon as possible as part of your assessment. We keep a stealth shuttle on standby, fully operational. Now, when can you visit our Shen refuge?”
“And of course you have my support,” added Sam 32nd. “Under the circumstances perhaps an unnecessary comment. I’ll have a team ready within a week, once we work through the skills needed. The English Prime Minister has offered resources. However, we’d prefer only humans who are willing to leave with us when we depart, to be on board Shen Ark.”
The words echoed in Freddie’s mind. If he wanted to work with Shen experts and explore their starship, he would need to leave with the New Rats when Shen Ark departed. He pushed his concerns away. There were too many things to consider, and he needed to focus on the meeting.
Ser Glide said, “We have everything you could possibly need, from blueprints to replicator templates to manuals to training courses—everything’s in Shen, of course. We can teach you to speak, read, and write Shen, or we can translate relevant material. The complete language immersion will take up to ten days. At least, we think it will. To date we’ve not tried our training approach on Rats; nor, for that matter, have we tried it on humans.”
“Can you give details of this language process to our Rat team? We’ll try to evaluate it as quickly as possible.”
“Certainly, Your Highness. I’ll arrange that when I return.”
“We’ve spent time on technology scope, language, undertakings—but haven’t yet addressed the price required by Shen for the starship. Have you thought of a starting point for the Rats to consider?” The questioner was Sir Rosco, from the Bank of England.
“Indeed, yes, we have. Our price is not high, we think. Our population’s very small. Our needs are few. We have some funds and precious metals with your Bank, although perhaps not enough for the remainder of our lives. We lack samples of human culture—art, music, literature, for example, which we’d like to acquire. Perhaps we can build a museum at the top of the world, and include human and Shen art works. We are preparing our price structure, and I’ll arrange for it to be sent to Sam 32nd by end of today. Once we deliver that, we’ll follow up with a complete inventory of Shen Ark. That will take some time, if we try to translate Shen to English—the result will need to be very detailed and comprehensive. Of course the technical contents of this inventory cannot be shared with humans or Rats not embarking on the Shen Ark.”
The room stilled as meeting members absorbed the latter point. Freddie stirred and decided to contribute his suggestion. “Ser Glide, I realise the glossary and related details may contain technology-related information which should be restricted. However, it’s possible to describe Shen Ark and its contents and materiel at a more general level. For example, you could provide general information about a shuttle, such as its type, engine power, speed, range, capacity, fuel, construction, standard equipment list, spares list, without giving away any details of your technology? Or consider another example: chairs, metal, with or without cushions and so on. Surely, such an approach will provide us with a solid starting point which we—Shen, humans and Rats—can expand as we determine who is or isn’t going into space?”
“Dr. Jones, I agree. Your approach will allow progress. Otherwise, negotiations could come to an end without a successful acquisition, and people—Rats and humans—would still need to go into space because they have knowledge of Shen technology.” The speaker was Sir Rosco.
Ser Glide looked discomfited momentarily as a babble of conversation broke out. He then nodded. “Yes, I understand. Thank you, Dr. Freddie. I see why His Highness wanted you to join his team. Very well. We’ll provide a summary level schedule of the Shen Ark and its contents to your Star Team. It’ll take a few days to produce, and it will be stripped of all detailed technological content. Is this acceptable?”
“I agree. Anyone disagree?” said Sam 32nd. He looked around the room, at all the attendees. No one raised objections. “Very well, Ser Glide, please proceed. Once we have your statement of cost together with at least a summary list of assets, we can proceed further. In the meantime, we’ll organize our team.”
“Shen request you and Dr. Freddie visit our Shen protectorate as soon as can be arranged. My people want to meet the key people—humans and Rats—who’ll be involved.”
“Certainly.” Sam 32nd looked around the table. “Everyone agree? Good. We’ll meet again in one week to review progress and formalize next steps for the Star Team members. Thank you, all.” He turned to Freddie. “We’ll continue our discussion once the others leave. We have a lot to consider.”
The meeting attendees gradually drifted away as they concluded minor side discussions. Everyone was apprehensive of the tasks ahead, no one more so than Freddie. He sat with the younger Rats while Sam 32nd carried out his duties as host and bid farewell to the other visitors.
“Well, the meeting was reasonably successful,” His Highness said as he returned to the table. “Freddie, well spotted. We could have ended up with an impossible conflict—detailed knowledge of Shen technology and no starship, and no way to leave Earth. I wonder what the repercussions of that would be? No, we don’t need to consider that possibility. Anything else?”
“Sir—”
“Yes, Freddie?”
“This is still sinking in. If I’m to be involved—it means I must leave earth, leave my home. Forever.”
“A major step, I know. We—New Rats—are looking forward to the possibility of acquiring Shen Ark. We—I want you as part of our Star Team. You’ll be a senior member, a significant part of our destiny. No decision required today, nor for some time. Think about it and let’s discuss it again when you wish.”
***
Chapter 15
Freddie, deep in thought, exited the front doors of the Embassy and walked down the steps. He was jolted into alertness when a member of the Black Guard stopped him.
“Sir, please don’t go out there. We’ll arrange a car for you.”
“Why not? I told His Highness, that I planned on walking across Kensington Gardens and then Hyde Park—I need some thinking time.”
“We have protestors outside. Someone stirred them up earlier, and we think it could be dangerous for you. The Captain’s checking with His Highness now.”
A small squad of Green Guards ran out through the Embassy front entrance. “Sir, Dr. Jones, Freddie. Stop, don’t go out there,” called the leader. “His Highness would like to speak with you. We’ll arrange a safer way for you to return home.”
Perplexed and slightly concerned, Freddie returned to the Embassy building. He was met by Sam 32nd just inside the heavy entrance doors.
“Oh good, they caught you. Security suspect the dissenting voice in our meeting has somehow generated a crowd of fellow dissenters. At the moment, only a hundred or so have gathered outside, however busloads are on their way and London Police advised us they need to block off both ends of Kensington Palace Gardens. They inferred the demonstration could get nasty; they’ve identified a number of troublemakers on the street already. I’ve given the order to close off the Embassy. There’s no guarantee that protestors won’t climb over the Embassy front gates or fences. I’ve ordered Guards to shutter all doors and windows and then to move inside. I sent a platoon to check on your Uncle Charles and Alice and I should hear shortly that they are all right. Guards will call in additional support, if necessary. They can always move your family—we’ve some very nice safe houses out Wimbledon way, where they’d be very comfortable and protected. Now I need to check what’s happening, so come with me to our intelligence room.”
Sam 32nd led the way downstairs to a large basement office. A number of Rats were watching video news channels, while others were checking images streaming from external Embassy cameras. Freddie stopped to
watch one of the news channels. A Rat he did not know handed him a pair of earphones and a remote control.
“We restrict the sound on each unit,” the Rat explained. “Otherwise it would be complete bedlam in here. Channels two, seven and thirteen are ours. One and four are EBC. There’s a Scottish channel, channel six, just to see what the SBC have to say. Nothing Welsh. Eight, nine and ten are the other commercial channels. We have some cross-Channel satellite news feeds as well, all above channel fifteen. Let me know if you need assistance.” He hurried off.
Anxious to discover what was happening, Freddie put on the earphones and took the remote control. Now he had sound to go with the video. He clicked through the channels. All were addressing the growing demonstration outside the Rat Embassy. Demonstrators were also gathering outside 10 Downing Street, the Prime Minister’s residence. Some channels, especially those controlled by Rats, had commentators and news readers taking a low key approach. Two channels, one from EBC and the other a commercial channel which supported the more extreme viewpoints of English politics, were far more aggressive, almost as though they were trying to incite a riot. Freddie hoped saner voices had more sway. He flicked back and forth, channel to channel, trying to build up a clearer picture of the situation.
Obviously someone had leaked news about the meeting at the Embassy and had revealed that New Rats were proposing to buy the Shen starship with all of its technology. Moderate and Rat-controlled channels were discussing this news in rational terms, while other channels were simply rabble-rousing, complaining that England was being deprived of its rightful technology, a claim with no basis and without a thread of logic in support. SBC commentators were stating that England was again depriving Scotland of its rightful heritage while cross-Channel commentators were posturing bitterly against English arrogance in allowing Rats to acquire this hitherto unknown and therefore marvellous technology.
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