We drove north-west towards Maine, a long journey which took all day and through the night. I drove at night, giving Freya time to recover. We listened to the developing news on the radio; by the evening it was full of the story of our capture and imprisonment. The men at the Winchester estate were "being interviewed by the police", having been found still unconscious. Several other men I had named were missing, and "wanted for questioning". An internal investigation was underway among the security services, with rumours of abrupt departures from some senior posts. There was a great deal of speculation about where we were now and what we were going to do next. Attempts had been made via email to obtain responses from the saurians, but they declined to comment.
As we approached the coast, Secundo, who had been doing some internet research into rentable holiday properties, guided us to a secluded chalet overlooking the North Atlantic. It was out of season, and not scheduled for any bookings for weeks. I broke in and we transferred the provisions which Freya had bought on the way.
We rested for a few hours, then reluctantly parted. For tactical reasons we had agreed that it was better for me to stay out of sight during the crucial second phase of our plan; the media interest was intense and we didn't want to risk any problems. Freya set off by herself, leaving me to kick my heels in the chalet, the monotony only broken by my night-time swims in the cold, rough Atlantic. When Freya moved out of direct contact, I followed her progress via the saurians. Her travels took her to New York where she dumped the car. She spent an hour or so at Grand Central Station at the peak of the evening rush hour, then went to JFK airport where she bought a ticket for London. The flight wasn't due to leave for a few hours, and she spent the time wandering around, exploring all of the terminals. From Heathrow she travelled into London and toured the main railway stations as well as wandering down the bustling Oxford Street. As we had arranged at short notice, she gave a lecture at London University on the saurian situation. Next came a flight to Paris, where she followed the same procedure, and then her lecture tour continued through every major capital city in Europe, Africa, Asia and South America. Reporters tried to grill her about what had happened to me, but she just said that I was still recovering in private from my ordeal; she hinted at complications from the constant drugging I had experienced. After zig-zagging across the USA she finally rented a car and drove back to meet me at the chalet.
She had lost weight in the three weeks her travels had taken, and was exhausted but triumphant. She looked just great to me. That evening, we settled down and relaxed together for the first time since Iceland.
The first news reports began to trickle through the next day and we watched the news channels tensely as the reports multiplied. People were suddenly finding that they were aware of others, of their moods and intentions. Stories of miraculous healings began to crop up; so did reports of domestic strife as people discovered their spouses' infidelities. Columnists were beginning to speculate about whether these events were connected in some way, and whether the kangasaurs or I had anything to do with this.
That night we had a conference with the saurians and decided that it was time to issue the statement. A message was emailed to every news organisation on the planet in the appropriate language. The English version read as follows:
"This is a message from Cade.
You may have heard reports from around the world that people are suddenly becoming more sensitive to others, and can understand their moods and intentions regardless of language differences. Some people have also found that they can heal certain types of ailments. These reports are true, and within a short space of time virtually everyone on the planet will be affected in the same way.
This is not accidental, but a deliberate act. At my instigation, the human population has been infected with a specially tailored virus which is making certain irreversible changes, not just to the people directly affected but also to their descendents via changes to the genetic code. This virus is exceptionally infectious and can be transmitted to other people within an hour of a carrier being exposed to it, but its characteristics do not become obvious for about three weeks. This process has now gone far enough to be unstoppable.
One of the changes is the ability to sense others, and to mind-link with people just as the saurians and I do, thereby achieving mutual understanding across language and other cultural barriers. Attached to this message is the specification for a headnet which will greatly extend the range of such communications and enable them to be transmitted and received via radio and television systems. The virus also strengthens the human immune and repair systems and has been tailored to correct serious genetic defects, which will result in far lower rates of illness and disability, much quicker recovery from injury and on average a significantly longer healthy lifespan. In some people the ability is strong enough for them to become healers. Finally, it prevents conception unless both parties eat at least a hundred grams of fresh-cut raw grass or certain types of leaf – the saurians will specify which – twelve hours before intercourse; the couple will then be fertile for a period of about twenty-four hours – including most couples who have previously been unable to conceive.
I am aware that many people will greatly resent what I have done, despite the practical benefits it brings them. I apologise for any distress I have caused, but plead an overriding necessity. The saurians have shown us what will happen to our civilisation if we go on as we are: it means disaster for humanity. I believe that my action achieves a balance between conflicting pressures. The changes which the virus is causing will, over a period of time, slowly reduce this planet's population to more sustainable levels. In the meantime they will benefit everyone's health and life expectancy. The great improvement in mutual understanding between people across the world will also reduce conflict and encourage cooperative efforts to address the problems we face.
Welcome to the new age of humanity!"
BOOK 3: TRANSFORMATION
10
EDITORIAL:
STABILITY RETURNS – AT LAST
Four months after Cade's infamous e-mail caused riots and chaos in many parts of the world, there are signs that the worst may be over. An uneasy calm now reigns in most of the areas which suffered the worst disturbances, as people begin to pick up the threads of their lives. Even the marches of millions of protesters have slowed to a trickle, although some religious groups are still on a rolling series of hunger strikes despite deaths already running into hundreds. Across much of central Africa, where the death toll from the initial paroxysm of fear and fury cannot yet even be estimated, the populace has subsided into resentful bewilderment. Martial law is still in place in many large cities, but is gradually being lifted as life gets back to normal. Only now can we begin to assess the consequences of Cade's ruthless unilateral action, although the full balance sheet will not become apparent for many years, or even decades.
The most immediate and dramatic consequences are of course a result of the development of the kangasaurs' "mind-linking" ability. This has affected society at all levels; the most positive outcome being what appears to be the start of a dramatic drop in organised crime due to the impossibility of concealing guilt. In those more law-abiding countries relatively unaffected by the riots and disorder, trials have virtually ceased to happen as the innocent are quickly identified and the guilty know they have no chance of escaping justice. Some previous miscarriages of justice have been identified and reversed on appeal. Face-to-face confidence tricksters have disappeared overnight. Anti-social behaviour has sharply reduced, with those who would previously behave in an inconsiderate fashion being cowed by the collective disgust of law-abiding onlookers.
More generally, there are signs that society is in some respects becoming more sociable, with people more willing to communicate with those strangers they now know are well-meaning. Far more sympathy and help is now being provided to those who are in genuine need. Romance is back in fashion, with people becoming quickly aware of any mutual attractio
n. A new sense of honesty is sweeping through politics, although many political organisations have agreed amnesties for politicians who have been found to have lied in the past, since there would otherwise be hardly anyone left to govern. It now appears certain that politicians will be required to wear headnets when speaking publicly or being interviewed, as soon as the technology to receive their transmissions has become widely available. Many well-known politicians have indicated that they will not be seeking re-election.
The benefits go beyond mind-linking. The shortage of doctors and nurses has suddenly vanished as people's self-healing mechanisms and immune systems have dramatically improved in effectiveness. The old standby of the work-shy to "throw a sickie" has disappeared. People are now more conscious of their bodies' needs and of what harms them; overindulgence in food, alcohol and other drugs has sharply reduced and far more people are discovering the benefits of physical exercise.
There are, of course, disadvantages as well. Past as well as current marital infidelities have been quickly detected, as have those individuals who no longer care for their spouses; much family disruption has occurred as a result. And while there are many examples of mutual understanding developing between those of different backgrounds and beliefs, there are also signs of a reverse effect, with those who firmly hold extreme views banding together and physically separating themselves from the censure of the rest of society. It remains to be seen whether they will attract any new followers, or will literally die out in due course.
Diplomacy is in a crisis, with the "gentlemen sent abroad" no longer able "to lie for their countries", and the genuine opinions which world leaders hold about each other no longer able to be concealed. So far no wars have resulted, but many international relationships are on hold while new modi vivendi are worked out.
Religions have experienced mixed fortunes; in some cases, the evident faith of certain priests has strengthened their following, while the unmasked insincerity of other religious leaders has had the opposite effect.
At a more trivial level, theatre attendances have plummeted, with the acting profession seemingly in danger of dying out – although music and dance performances have soared in popularity, with the audiences gaining new insights from the emotions of the performers.
It is now clear that not everyone has acquired equal abilities. Some are more sensitive than others to people's emotions. Only a few – probably no more than one in a thousand – have acquired the ability to heal. Perhaps fortunately, none has so far exhibited anything like the range of capabilities that Cade has demonstrated. Many find a deep mind-link difficult or uncomfortably intimate and prefer to communicate by speech, so the spoken word is unlikely to die out in the foreseeable future.
It is still too early to say how the balance between these pluses and minus will work out; the scales could still tip either way. The benefits in health, fitness and an honest, crime-free society are clear, but critics are beginning to complain about the loss of privacy and the beginning of a stifling new mood of conformity to avoid social censure. They claim that the human personality will be irreversibly changed, with spontaneity and individuality crushed, and that humanity will be much the poorer for it. At the present the main public feeling appears to be one of bewilderment; people have lost the anchors of accepted social behaviour and are trying to find new ways of living together, as evidenced by the presence of so many guides to the "new social etiquette" topping the best-sellers lists.
Before the kangasaur virus was released, the most controversial proposal had been the restriction on fertility. This has now been overshadowed by the effects of mind-linking, but views on this are still deeply divided and are likely to remain so. Broadly speaking, the developed world is in favour except for some religious groups, the poorer countries strongly opposed, although there are signs that women in even the poorest countries are beginning to welcome their control over their own fertility. This has already had an impact on the lexicon; the phrase "chewing grass" has come to mean "getting ready to take serious action".
What of Cade? Nothing has so far been heard from him, his presumed accomplice (dubbed by some, "Typhoid Freya"), or even the kangasaurs whose technology made this possible. They have obviously considered it advisable to stay out of contact until the world has come to accept the drastic changes they have set in motion. Given the strength of feeling in so many places, they are probably wise.
Some people are already beginning to speak out in their defence; those who have suffered from severe ailments, genetic disorders or addictions now cured, together with their friends and relatives, have been vocal in their support and thanks. Homes for the frail and elderly have been closing down because so many of their rejuvenated residents have been, if not quite leaping out of bed or defenestrating their zimmer frames, at least finding that they can look after themselves once more, to their intense relief. Residents of formerly crime-ridden areas are revelling in their new freedom from fear.
Looking further ahead, many optimistic commentators predict a new spirit of co-operation in the world, with countries abandoning armed force and focusing instead on resolving the environmental problems made so starkly clear by the kangasaurs. Those still denying that climate change exists, or claiming that if it exists it is an entirely natural process, or that even if humanity is involved there is nothing that can be done about it anyway, are now in a tiny minority. A new sense of urgency and determination appears to be developing, with the mass production of the simpler examples of kangasaur technology already underway. Whether this heralds a new chance for humanity, or is "too little too late", remains to be seen. While there are signs that the rate of pregnancies in the developing world is dropping sharply, the world's population will remain well over what environmentalists claim is the "sustainable limit" for decades or even centuries to come. That is one problem which will not go away in our lifetimes.
I logged off the news service, closed the laptop on the plain wooden table and rubbed my eyes tiredly. I got up and walked across the stone-flagged floor, ducked under the low door lintel and straightened up to enjoy the view. Turf kept short by the half-wild sheep swept down to a beach of white sand, glowing in the evening light. The ocean, moderately calm for once, stretched away towards the sunset, dotted with rocks and islets. I turned and surveyed the area, scanning with my eyes and mind as was my habit. The land rose behind the long, low, whitewashed and turf-roofed house, sweeping up to a low hill. There was not a soul within range, and not a sound except for the crying of the gulls against the background of the soughing breeze.
I turned and ran up the hill, taking my customary evening exercise. At the top there was a jumble of rocks, too even in size to be natural, presumably the remains of some Iron Age broch. I stopped and surveyed the wider scene, focusing my scan into a tight, far-reaching beam which swept over to the larger island looming to the east. No boats were visible; this part of the Outer Hebrides was not on the popular tourist track and there was no reason for anyone to come to this small, deserted island except for the shepherd at shearing time. I went through my usual exercise routine until I was breathing hard, then ran back down the hill to my refuge from the world.
It had been Richards' idea, when it became clear that Freya and I had become anathema to the world at large. He had identified the private island, rapidly repaired the old shepherd's hut, and installed one of the highly-efficient saurian power systems, consisting of advanced solar panels which produced electricity to break down water into hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen was then stored and used to feed a fuel cell whenever electricity was needed to run my laptop or power the satellite internet link.
I had gritted my teeth in the interests of maximum security and submitted to being flown with Freya in a private jet to Scotland. I had been there ever since, serving out what I regarded as a period of exile until such time as I could reappear in public without causing an instant riot.
Freya had, in a way, been luckier. The saurians had prepared another patch whi
ch, over a period of just a few weeks, had taken the desired twenty years off her physical age (which delighted her), replaced her blonde hair and blue eyes with red and vivid green respectively (which intrigued her), and changed her tanned skin to a paler colour with freckles, which she hated – but she had to admit that it all added up to an impenetrable disguise. She had left shortly afterwards since, as I pointed out, there was no need for her to share my exile when she could pass unrecognised.
My motives in sending her away were not entirely those of noble self-denial. I was worried about her state of mind. She had, I realised, always been sociable and popular, and had been shattered by the deluge of vitriol which had poured out of the television and internet once the relationship between her world lecture tour and the spread of the saurian virus had been identified. She tried to shield her emotions from me, but I would wake to hear her crying quietly in desperate misery, and knew that she could not stay.
The ever-efficient Richards had found her a new identity, a job and a place to live in Edinburgh. I reflected with a trace of old bitterness that his continued contrition over Sophie was still proving very useful. The saurians had helped with some intensive training in masking thoughts so that Freya's real identity would not be suspected by those she came into casual contact with. Her freedom came at a price, though; she would never be able to drop her barriers for a full mind-link without revealing her identity.
Sometimes I wondered why I was not much affected by my isolation and pariah status, but put that down to my phlegmatic saurian genetic inheritance. The saurians had offered to develop a patch for me which would change my appearance back to the human norm, but I had rejected it. Probably in order to survive with my sanity intact, I had long ago come to accept the way I was, and was content to stay that way for the duration – however long or short that might be.
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