The whine of the slider machine started climbing up the scale. After a few seconds, with a slight crackle, the hole appeared simultaneously on both worlds. I was standing in line with the front of the hole, and could see the S2 Representative through it. He was much taller than the S2 people, bigger even than I, and would have to stoop to get through the hole. As agreed, the S1 Ambassador began to step through first – but what happened next was not planned. A brief flash of raw agony ripped through our minds, before he collapsed on the earth of S2. A collective mental gasp swept around the arena, and the S2 Representative crouched over the stricken Ambassador. There was a tense pause as he examined the unconscious saurian, deploying his healing skills. After a few moments of concentrated attention, the Ambassador began to revive. He was clearly groggy and nauseous, not really aware of what was going on.
Primo turned to me in alarm. 'What did you experience when you stepped through the hole?'
'A moment's nausea, but nothing like this.'
There was an intense blur of communications around the arena, too fast and complex for me to follow. The Convenor stepped forwards and addressed the S2 Council via her headnet; it seemed that mental transmissions could not pass directly through the slider hole. She had to use slower and simpler communications with the S2 Rulers, so that although I didn't understand the language she was thinking in I was able to absorb her regret and concern. The S2 Primary had also stepped forwards, and for the first time I received mental transmissions from an S2 saurian, as they were relayed around the arena. His mind was hard and cold, tightly controlled, revealing nothing beyond what he intended. After a brief exchange, the hole flicked out of existence and the slider machine started to power down. A translation by one of the visiting experts was passed to me; both sides had agreed to suspend the exchange until they could determine what had happened to the unfortunate Ambassador.
The Assembly meeting to debate the problem was held on the spot, and I was invited to give my views. As the only person who had so far stepped through the slider machine without collapsing, I tried to describe the sensation I had experienced. Thinking back on it and analysing the memory, there had been a moment of intense disorientation which had caused my nausea. There had also been a blurred flash of light as I stepped through, but that was all I could recall. There was one thing that puzzled me, though.
'When I had my original accident, when your scientists tried to contact me, didn't one of them pass through the machine to put the repair patch on me and take a biopsy?'
There was a moment's pause while the scientists were contacted. Much of the global population, I understood, must have been awake and following events, and a response came through quickly. It seemed that after the explosion I had fallen within reach of the slider hole, and the quick-thinking scientist had just reached through with his arms – his head had not passed through the hole.
A series of experiments was quickly organised; with both the Assembly and the Council convened, the saurians were anxious not to waste the opportunity. Less than an hour later, everything was ready once more, the saurians on both worlds waiting expectantly. The slider machine was powered up again and the hole flicked into life. On the S1 side, a volunteer came forward and gingerly approached the machine. He reached an arm through the hole. On the viewscreens, it could be clearly seen passing through to S2. He reported no ill effects other than a tingling feeling. He then carefully moved his head towards the hole, while the Assembly held its collective breath. As his skull began to make contact, he reported a sudden dizziness and withdrew.
The next test involved one of the grazing animals which had been lassoed and hauled into the arena. Both worlds watched in fascination as the animal was unceremoniously bundled through the hole. It emerged on the other side, shook its head in irritation, but otherwise seemed normal. It was about to start grazing on the longer and moister grass on S2 when a tug of the rope brought it back again, bleating protest. The disgruntled animal was led out of the arena while the experiment went to the next stage.
This time it was one of the workers from S2 – a group which had no mind-linking ability. The Rulers had evidently not bothered to advise her of the risk, as she hopped readily through to S1 before turning and hopping back again. A brief conversation followed – the strange sound of saurian voices over the audio link never failing to send a shiver down my spine – and a translation was shared immediately; she had felt a slight dizziness, but no other ill effects.
The final stage involved another volunteer from S1. An up-and-down ramp was placed through the hole and a low, four-wheeled trolley pushed close to it. The volunteer sat on the trolley and adopted a crouched-down rest position while another saurian briefly touched his head, rendering him unconscious. The trolley was then pushed up the ramp and through the hole. The S1 Ambassador, who had mostly recovered from his ordeal, was on hand to bring the volunteer back to consciousness again. This time, no ill effects were reported, and there was a collective sigh of relief around the arena.
We were now ready to complete the exchange, but then a problem cropped up. The S2 Representative was most unwilling to let down his mental defences sufficiently to permit anyone to make him unconscious. A hum of debate followed; Primo explained that for an S2 Ruler, letting down his guard was equivalent to a human undressing in public. It took some noisy debate among the Council – who evidently preferred to retain oral communication among themselves – before the reluctant Representative was sufficiently reassured (or bribed with some trade benefits, the translators suggested) and duly wheeled through and revived.
He was greeted with due formality and invited to the Assembly building for refreshments. I tailed along at the back of the throng, observing with interest as those Assembly members who had learned his language engaged him in conversation. His mind was firmly closed, speech only being used, but the meeting appeared to be going quite well (apart from some disappointment on his part at the restricted fare on offer) until random shifts in the movement of the Assembly members left a clear space between us. As luck would have it, he turned and saw me. He stopped speaking and stared in shock, then his mental barriers dropped and I needed no translation of his thought: 'WHAT IS THAT??!!'
I made myself scarce during the next half-hour's intensive video briefing on the human worlds in general, and me in particular. Afterwards, I was introduced to the dazed Representative. He was attempting to maintain an iron control of his emotions, but they were so strong that they still leaked through. I had never experienced such intense physical revulsion before, even from the most prejudiced human. He just stared, and said nothing in response to my translated greeting. I bowed slightly and made my exit.
The Convenor did not join us that evening, engaged as she was in trying to mollify the stunned and outraged Representative, but Primo had been staying close to the exchanges and gave us a full report.
'We didn't anticipate such a reaction. With the benefit of hindsight, we perhaps should have done. We on S1 had known about the existence of humanity for centuries, and become entirely used not just to the fact of your existence but also to your - forgive me – rather bizarre physical appearance.' He seemed slightly embarrassed, and rushed on. 'From our perspective, you actually look a lot better than other humans.' He paused, his confusion increasing.
I grinned wickedly at him. 'Keep digging!'
He ruefully recovered his composure and carried on. 'On S2 they have not had the benefit of such preparation. They were certain that they were the only intelligent life ever to have lived. It was rather a shock to them to discover the parallel saurian worlds, and they were concerned about the evident differences in our philosophy and society, but the revelation about humanity is at least an order of magnitude more disturbing for them. Not the best of starts.'
'It would have been worse if they had discovered later, as they inevitably would. Then they would have added mistrust of you for concealing our existence to their grievances. So what happens now?'
'The
parallel visits will go on as planned. We will be taking the Representative around our world to show him how we live, and also trying to get him used to the existence of humanity. Our Ambassador has a rather different role, as we already have a broad if superficial knowledge of S2; he will be trying to sound out their attitudes, to determine where they may be flexible and what their sticking points are.'
'How will the Representative be travelling around?'
'In one of the big beam-powered airships, like the one we arrived in.'
I felt uneasy. 'I hope it isn't the one with the slider machine. I think you should keep those devices under close guard.'
Primo regarded me thoughtfully. 'You think he would try to gain control?'
'I think it is entirely possible. All he would have to do is arrange via his headnet for a force of soldiers to be concealed at a particular place, then find an excuse to persuade your people to open a hole there. The troops would rush in and seize the airship.'
The saurians all stared at me, radiating a strange mixture of admiration and distaste. 'You have a remarkable imagination.' Tertia remarked. 'However do you think of such things?'
'Just part of the rich tapestry of human experience. I'm prepared to bet one thing, though; from what I've seen and sensed of the inhabitants of S2, their thought patterns are much closer to mine than yours.'
Primo nodded reluctantly. 'Very well, we have time to call in one of the other beam ships, I think it is not far away. And we will remove some critical parts of the slider machine here and keep them safe until we need to use it. There is only one other machine in existence, and that is on another continent, with the scientists who developed it.' He thought for a moment. 'In any case, on the airship we could just shut off the power beam. He would only be able to use it until the on-board power ran out, which wouldn't be long.'
'Long enough to move enough soldiers on board to take all of the crew hostage.'
Primo concentrated for a moment and I sensed him communicating with someone outside the room. 'All right, that's arranged. Does your healthy state of paranoia suggest any other risks?' His humour was becoming strained by anxiety.
I ran possibilities through my head, testing them for weaknesses. 'Do you have any weapons?'
Universal astonishment. 'Of course not, whatever for?'
'I'd be willing to bet that the representative, even if he has no weapon – which he may well have, I know you haven't searched him and he could hide a gun under those robes – is fully trained in the unarmed combat skills they impart to their soldiers. Furthermore, I'll bet he is trained to resist any attempt to use mental powers to suppress him; in fact, I suspect that he's a lot better at mental combat than I am, let alone you peaceniks. Suppose he held one of you hostage and threatened to kill you if a hole was not opened to let in his soldiers, who then threatened to kill everyone in Laketown if the power wasn't kept on. What would you do?'
They sat stunned, mouths literally open, a part of me noticed with amusement. 'Never mind, I have an idea. How do I set about communicating with Richards?'
They guided me through the mental process of using the headnet to access the communication machine which enabled direct mental contact with headnet-equipped people on a parallel world, then showed me how to search for Richards. Eventually I made contact with him. I spent a few minutes briefing him on the situation. He thought for a moment, then sent; 'as it happens, I have just the thing for you- we have one for evaluation.' He showed me an image and explained the workings to me, and I grinned, impressed.
'Sounds just the ticket! I'll get it collected.'
Then followed a brief three-way link between Richards, Primo and myself, while arrangements were made to send the beam ship with the slider machine across to the location of London to make the collection.
Later that evening, I waited out in the open a discreet distance from the town. It was dark, the usual starlit blaze of the heavens obscured by a thick layer of cloud. A steadily growing murmur of sound announced the arrival of the unseen airship, and after a few minutes my enhanced night vision picked up the shape of a lift cabin descending to earth a few yards away. I walked over to it, opened the door and retrieved the heavy black plastic case lying inside. The cables tautened again and the cabin lifted into the sky. I turned and walked back to Laketown, feeling a little more reassured but still tense and nervous.
Once in my room, I opened the case and checked the contents, before closing it and sliding it under my bed. Not that the S1 saurians would dream of opening it even if they found it, but I would prefer not to answer questions about it. Sleep came tardily that night.
The next morning all seemed well and the Representative's personal airship appeared, its power drone in tow. He was seen off with due formality, and I heaved a sigh of relief. Perhaps I was being overly suspicious. Then I recalled the mental signatures of the Representative and the Primary, and decided that I was not.
As we returned to the town, Primo paused for a moment, concentrating on an incoming message. Then he stopped dead, radiating amazement and wonder.
'What gives?'
'The combined team of saurian and human scientists working on the slider technology have made another breakthrough. They have found a way to detect and lock on to parallel worlds without requiring them to be transmitting radio or TV signals.'
'Good for them. And?'
'They have found another world. A formerly human one, but with no remaining signs of human life. It is standing empty, waiting for occupants!'
13
It turned out that the new Earth was not entirely new; after some research and comparisons with their records, the saurians determined that it was H11, contact with which had been abruptly lost in mysterious circumstances over a century before. The beam ship with the slider machine took Primo, Secundo, Tertia and myself the short hop across the southern North Sea, and slowly cruised up the Thames while I attempted to get my bearings. In my time the river and its tributaries had been so channelled – and in some cases buried under buildings – that this was not an easy task. I had to visit the slider machine and examine the viewer, locked onto the same scene in H11, to check that I was in the right place. Although it was less than a month since I had last been in London – my own London – I felt a pang of nostalgia to see a familiar sprawl of docks and buildings lining the river, instead of the almost uninhabited broad, marshy estuary visible from the observation deck. A closer inspection started to reveal differences. This really wasn't my London, although superficially similar. According to the saurians, this world had diverged from my own branch several centuries ago, although they were uncertain exactly what had prompted the departure – they had lost contact before they could pin it down. However, it seemed likely that the language would still be close enough to English that we could make some sense of any records left behind.
I didn't really expect what I was looking for to be in exactly the same location but I had to start somewhere, so after some cross-checking with maps of my London and carefully positioning the airship, the four of us got into the slider machine cabin and rode silently down. As we approached, I paid close attention to the viewer. The streets and buildings were similar to the ones I would have expected to see in late Victorian times, but they had clearly been long abandoned. Trees had burst through the roads and plants of all kinds sprouted from the buildings, some of which were in a state of collapse. Parts of the City were flooded where the water had breached the embankments. On the south bank, a large area appeared to be have been gutted by fire. The cabin gently stopped as we reached the level of the street visible on the viewer. I looked out of the cabin's window and realised that we had not yet reached the ground of the saurian world – or to be precise the water, as we were hovering over a tributary. Centuries of human development had raised the level of the land in London and this river had been covered over, in both this world and mine. The slider machine powered up, and we looked through the hole at the desolate street scene. I took a breath and st
epped through first, feeling the same brief nausea and seeing the bright, blurry flash once more; Secundo stunned first Primo then Tertia before pushing them through for me to revive. He would be staying behind to operate the machine on our return. The three of us started to walk or hop down what had, in my time, been known as Fleet Street.
It was like walking through some film set showing the ruin of a Dickensian city. Whatever had happened here had not involved physical violence. Most of the buildings still stood, although many looked dangerous to enter. Birds sang their joy at springtime, a couple of cats were seen skulking at a safe distance. Rather to my surprise, we did manage to locate the offices of a newspaper, in a building which still looked reasonably intact, although signs of water pouring down the inside walls showed that the roof had given up the struggle. Damp, yellowed papers were stored in rotting wooden cupboards, but it was simple enough to locate the final editions. It was much more difficult to read them, as the language had shifted in various ways and the meaning of many words was unclear. We collected what seemed relevant and carried it back to Secundo and the saurians' world.
Once back on the airship, the papers were scanned and submitted to an old computer programme which had managed to translate the H11 language in the days of the saurian contact. It converted this to my English and we studied the result. It did not make pretty reading.
PLAGUES SPREAD TO ALBION!
Primary Minister issues message of reassurance
The lethal plague spreading like wildfire across the Continent has now been reported in Duber. Despite the strict quarantine measures in place, several people fell ill this morning, suffering from the symptoms we have come to dread. They are not expected to survive the night. The Home Defence Minister stated in Parliament that Duber and its immediate surroundings have been cordoned off by army units who have been given orders to shoot anyone trying to leave or enter the port.
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