“What? They’re your enemy,” Greg retorted, confused.
“So you say, and so they seem to believe,” she replied undaunted, looking at each of them in turn. “They’re wrong, and so are you. I have no enemies. My people have no enemies. That is our choice, a choice made in accordance with our ways.”
“What?” Greg exclaimed, shaking his head to clear it. Had he heard right?
“You don’t understand.” She sank back into her pillows with her eyes closed. After a time, she opened her eyes again to him. “We have reached a temporary impasse, but we cannot give up. We are alien beings attempting to communicate for the first time. No one said it would be easy, and it is not, but we have a wonderful opportunity here. Let’s not ruin it.”
Her eyelids were beginning to droop. “Are you okay?” Nancy asked.
“I’m healing. The medicine is making its demands again. I will sleep whether I want to or not. I have no control over the process. May we continue later?”
She was asleep before they left the tent.
Chapter Six
She awoke thirsty and hungry as evening approached. After she had eaten, she wanted to get up and move around, but she graciously acquiesced when Nancy asked her to wait at least one more day.
They gathered in the tent again, a little more subdued than on the previous occasion. They had some big hurdles to cross. Arlynn started things off.
“Will you take me to my ship?”
“We’re damned if we do, and damned if we don’t,” Greg answered for the group.
“I think I understand your doubts about helping me, but what is this concern about not helping?”
“If the Harbok catch us helping you, we become their enemy. If we don’t help, and if your people find out that your mission failed because of us, we become their enemy. Clear enough?”
“You make assumptions without knowledge.”
“Enlighten us.”
“The enlightenment you need is my greatest secret,” she argued. “Your perceptiveness has created a situation where the resolution of your dilemma creates an unsolvable dilemma for me. Either you accept my promise to you that my people are peaceful, that we seek peace and that your helping me will help us reach that peace, or you force me to betray a confidence. Which shall it be?”
Nancy offered a rebuttal. “We’re all after peaceful resolution, Arlynn. Why can’t you offer the same degree of trust to us that you expect in return?”
“You mean well, but few on your planet are truly peaceful.”
“Not true!” Nancy exclaimed.
“We’re caught in the middle, Arlynn,” Jim declared. “You and the Harbok are light-years ahead of us in technology. We wouldn’t stand a chance if either of you attacked us, so we can’t afford to take sides. We need to find a way out of this that doesn’t include us offending either side. Our people deserve no less.”
Arlynn really struggled within herself. Greg wondered what sort of ethics she applied in the resolution of her dilemma. What must it be like to travel between the stars, to know and experience so much? Was she a leader among her people? Was she a general, or was she just a private?
She looked directly into Greg’s eyes and chose her words with obvious care. “This debate began with you asking why my people sent a scientist to do a soldier’s job.” She paused, then plunged ahead. “I never lie, but I did not tell you the whole truth. We did not send a scientist. We sent two scientists. The reason we sent scientists is that we have no soldiers.”
Greg’s brow furrowed. “No soldiers?” he asked in disbelief. “You’re fighting a war and you brought no soldiers with you? That doesn’t make sense.”
She continued looking directly into his eyes. “Greg, we brought no soldiers because my people have no military.”
It took a moment for her words to sink in. When they did, he could not accept her answer. “No military?” he asked, repeating her words. When she returned his look with a stare, he said, “You’re kidding! Everyone has a military. Besides, your ship was definitely shooting back at the Harbok.”
“Jarl’s ship was one of our newest, and it was armed, but most of our ships are not. We’re working hard to change that, but even the few fighting ships we have are staffed by civilians.”
She gave him time to digest her words, then added, “Beyond physical similarities, we have little in common with you. We are a much older people. Our early civilization probably began much the same as yours, but we chose different paths early on. Our planet is much gentler in its demands for survival, and competition was never as intense there as it is here. There were a few wars, minor in comparison to what you have experienced, but they were many thousands of years ago. As a result, we are a gregarious and intellectual people. Most of us, for example, live in what you would consider to be very close quarters. Not that our living places are small, they are simply congregated together out of choice. Most of us prefer living in cities rather than in the country. We do not feel threatened by our neighbors. Instead, we share our lives with them.
“We are competitive, just as you are, but it is not necessary on my world to compete merely for survival. Everyone’s basic needs are met. We have no starvation, no homeless, no illiterate. Instead, our competitive needs find fulfillment in intellectual pursuits. We devote enormous resources and energies to a better understanding of life itself, the very essence of life, and we have done so for generations. We love life. Killing is entirely foreign to our thinking. Because we have no wars, we have no military.”
She studied their reactions with scientific intensity and found Greg studying her right back with narrowed eyes. Sensing correctly that he did not understand, she gave him the rest of what he needed.
“We’ve been searching for intelligent life for many years. We have only found you and the Harbok. This search has been carried out by our Exploration Service, of which I am a member. We members of the Exploration Service joined in order to actively participate in this wonderful search for life. However, soon after discovering the Harbok, we found ourselves at war with them.
“Since the Exploration Service is theoretically the closest thing we have to a military, the Service has been called upon to defend our race.” She sighed. “From a practical standpoint, it is not working. We are not suited to killing. In fact, such an act is abhorrent. Most of us are incapable of killing even when we are ourselves at risk.”
She focused all her attention on Greg. “We are not very good at war, but we are quite good at peace. Consequently, we are searching for a peaceful means to resolve this conflict. It is a massive effort. We’ll succeed, but we need time. The Harbok technology in my bag might give us that time. The technology is not a weapon, nor can it be used as a weapon.”
“What is it then?” Greg asked. “What can possibly give you protection if it’s not a weapon?”
“That is one of those questions I will not answer. I will only say that it is technology which we do not yet understand, and that it will help us along our path to peaceful resolution.”
She stared into his eyes and read the hesitation there. She sighed and said, “There is nothing more I can tell you. I have already said far more than I should have, and I will be held accountable. Now I must ask for your decision. Will you take me to my ship?”
Greg’s lips pursed, and he looked away deep in thought. “It’s not that easy,” he said when his gaze returned to her. “There’s a lot at stake here. We’ve been trying hard not to make any decisions until we have all the data.”
“Greg, you will never have all the data. I cannot say more. Even if I did, knowing your suspicious natures, I’m certain you would not be satisfied with only one side of the story. I’m not exactly in a position to introduce you to the Harbok,” she added with the hint of a smile.
“Then tell us about the Harbok,” he pushed. “What are they like? Where are they from? Where is their base?”
“I will not tell you where their base is, nor where they are from. As for what they
are like, I don’t know. We know almost nothing about them.”
“Can’t you tell us anything?” begged Nancy. “Surely you know what they look like.”
“They are human, or at least humanoid. I do not know how they think, I know nothing of their language or customs, I only know that when we encounter them, they fight. They refuse all contact with us.”
“Wait a minute,” Greg asked with a frown. “Didn’t you say the other night that you had attempted contact and failed? What happened?”
She stared off into space for a time, then she turned back to them with large, sad eyes. “Yes, we attempted contact. We have, in fact, attempted contact on many occasions, but on one occasion we made a major, well-planned effort to meet with them. The effort was years in the making, and it almost worked.”
“What happened?” Greg pressed.
“We made a mistake.” Then more softly, she added, “To our great shame, we made a terrible mistake.” They waited in silence for her to continue, but she shook her head. “I cannot say more. It was a simple mistake, there was no . . . malice . . . in it, but the consequences were grave.”
“You can’t tell us anything about it?”
“No. I can only tell you that we accept responsibility for the failure. In your eyes, the Harbok are blameless.”
Greg sensed the finality of her statement, but he wanted more. How could they make such a critical decision based only on what she had told them so far? Yet where could they get more information? There were no more sources.
“You might think you’ve told us a lot, but it’s still just the tip of the iceberg from where we sit,” he said carefully. “What about your ship? Where is it, and where will you go in it? And what about the stuff in your bag? You say it’s not a weapon. What is it then? That’s a key issue.”
“I will tell you where my ship is after you have agreed to help me return to it. I cannot tell you where I will go in it, nor can I tell you more about the Harbok technology. It is not a weapon, Greg. It is only a shipboard system that will help us avoid fighting the Harbok. If we can figure out how it works, it will save lives.”
“Things have funny ways of becoming weapons, Arlynn. Harbok have already died because of your theft of this equipment. Can you tell me with all that honesty of yours that no more Harbok lives will ever be lost when this technology becomes operational in your ships?”
His words hit her like a slap. With just a little reflection, he felt their cruelty when seen through her eyes. To her, killing was a terrible wrong. Had she even admitted to herself that she was responsible for the deaths of everyone aboard the Harbok ship that blew up? Blood drained from his face. He wanted to kick himself, to take back his words. How could he have been so thoughtless? He wanted to offer her comfort, but he didn’t know how since the question needed an answer. Would the contents of her bag affect the war or not? Surely they would, or else she would not have come for them.
Nancy gave him a withering look, but she remained silent. Perhaps she wanted to hear the answer as well. Jim’s expression was inscrutable.
Arlynn did not look at him when she responded. She seemed to be looking inside herself instead, yet she spoke with conviction. “I tell you it is not a weapon. It is not capable of harming anyone. We do not want to hurt the Harbok!” Then her gaze rose to meet his with a hard look. “Greg, I have never considered the issue in quite these terms. No, I cannot tell you that no Harbok will ever come to harm as a consequence of our having this technology. What you are suggesting is indeed possible, but only indirectly.”
“Then what if we take you to your ship and leave the Harbok stuff here, just throw it in the lake or something?”
To his surprise, she considered his proposal. He could see the process in her eyes and in her expressions as she mulled it over. At first, he thought she liked the idea, but then her expression darkened with determination.
“No. Your suggestion has merit, and from your perspective it might be the best solution. I hope it is not your decision. This device will save lives—Harbok lives and our own. If it helps to bring peace, then we all win, including your people. You’ve convinced me that there might be some risk to you, but you also have a lot to gain. I tell you again, the device will not directly take Harbok lives, but it will give us more time to find solutions.”
He sensed the finality of her words. It was time to decide. He, Nancy, and Jim needed to talk privately, but he needed to be alone with his own thoughts for a while first.
He got up to leave, but just before stepping outside, he turned back to her. “We don’t even know who your people are. What do you call yourselves?”
“That is not so easily answered since I am dealing with translation from my language to yours," she said. She met his unblinking stare with a questioning look, searching his eyes for answers that were not yet there, then she said, "The translation of my people’s name is . . .”
She hesitated, then said clearly, “Human.”
* * * * *
Outside, a darkening crescent of sky in the east ushered in the coming night. The two float planes parked wingtip to wingtip on the beach nearby rested motionless in the utterly still air, the snouts of their floats pulled up on shore like boat hulls. Greg wandered along their small section of shoreline, troubled, then he stood for a while looking out over the lake, not really thinking, just trying to let his subconscious get a feel for what he needed to do. An occasional fish plopped in the distance, and the repetitive calls of a loon signaled its mate. Sound carried far on these calm evenings—he even heard the murmur of voices drifting his way from the tent. Had it been an ordinary day, they would be wrapping up the day’s fishing and retreating to the tent where they would play cards or read before the mosquitoes became unbearable. But an ordinary day it was not. Considering the state of his mind, he found the tranquility ironic.
Rays from the setting sun ignited the few high cirrus clouds on the western horizon, reminding him of the red pulsating signal beside the door of Arlynn’s escape pod. The planet Venus stared unwinking from its place a few degrees above where the sun that had just fallen below the horizon. Soon, to the east, stars appeared as the twilight deepened. He studied them with a whole new intensity, just as he had the night before and the night before that. No longer tiny points of beauty to him, he now knew there was life out there. The immensity of it all overwhelmed him as he stood looking up in awe. Yes, there really is life out there. We are not alone. How wonderful! But why did it have to happen this way, and to him, to them?
Then, with a bit of a shock, he realized that he was glad it had happened to him. He was glad to be in this place at this moment in time. Looking back to the small rectangle of light coming through the open flap of the tent, Greg tried to grasp the implausible reality of who was inside. An alien being, and she was from . . . out there somewhere.
He turned and headed away from the tent, picking his way carefully along the shoreline in the deepening twilight. He had occasionally wondered about the possibility of other intelligent life. Who hadn’t? He had imagined several ways in which first contact with aliens might occur: a huge spaceship hovering silently over Washington, DC demanding to meet our leader, or perhaps some years in the future when Man was the most intelligent being in the galaxy discovering a race of less developed aliens on some distant planet light-years away. In the first scenario, the aliens gave us the tools to stop fighting among ourselves. In the second, we had outgrown our petty squabbles.
Invasion by hostile aliens had always been a possibility, though in his mind not as likely. But this? First Contact wasn’t supposed to happen like this, far removed from civilization.
But it was happening. It was happening here, to him, and to Nancy and Jim. He was right in the middle of First Contact, and the very idea excited him. They had to make it work. And she had a ship. Did he want to get on that ship! For the past couple of days, he had been imagining blasting off into space to meet more of her people. He bit his lip, knowing he might end
up getting dissected instead of welcomed, but heck, he was willing to take the chance. He could see himself going to the moon, stepping out into the airless void in a space suit, using the odd loping gait he’d seen the astronauts use to get to Arlynn’s base for help. Maybe they’d let him stay for a while, show him some of their neat stuff. He could meet their leaders, maybe even convince them to come back to Earth with him, perhaps to Washington or the UN, and announce their presence. What a shock that would be to the world.
He desperately wanted this encounter to go well, to be the beginning of something permanent, not just a brief encounter in the wilderness that began and ended here. But because of Arlynn’s bag, if they were to accede to her request, no one else could know of her presence. Not only had an enormous responsibility been thrust on them, Arlynn insisted that this First Contact be limited to their small group.
Greg’s thoughts returned to his surroundings. He had gone beyond the clearing, through a stand of trees that grew almost down to the edge of the lake, and reached a favorite outcropping of rocks. He climbed to the top and sat staring out over the water with his knees drawn up and his shoulders hunched. Mosquitoes began their twilight pestering, and he lifted his worn baseball cap and held it above his head, drawing most of them to it.
Then he remembered the Harbok. What if he did go to the moon and meet Arlynn’s people? Would the Harbok let them come back to Earth with him? The Harbok were the reason her people had not let their presence be known to us yet.
He wished he could meet with representatives of the Harbok and hear their side of the story. What did they look like? Were they human, or at least humanoid, or were they lizards? She had said they were humanoid, but that was ambiguous. He decided he was better off not knowing. The sight of them might hinder his ability to be even slightly rational about this whole thing. Yet, without knowing more about them, Arlynn’s words were his only guide. That was the essence of the problem. Was she telling the truth, the whole truth? He wanted to believe her, she seemed sincere and friendly, a nice person. He liked the way she looked at him so directly, but how honest would he be if their roles were reversed with the stakes so high?
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