Alien Caller

by Greg Curtis

  Then the elderly scientist, Dr. Pearal as Cyrea had told him the previous night, put up something completely different. Biology lessons from school, and the fact that they’d seen them the previous day told David what they were; pictures of DNA combining and replicating.

  “We’ve barely begun our sequencing work. After all we never thought we’d have to. But what we have done is to analyse the recombination of your two DNA’s. We’ve put haploid strands of David’s DNA and yours together exactly as it is in fertilization, and watched it replicate in blank cells. And we’ve done it literally hundreds of times. Each time it’s exactly the same; it replicates perfectly to form perfectly normal new cells, with the characteristics of both parents.”

  “We’ve done it in test cultures, chromosome by chromosome, watching under electron microscopes as it combines, looking for the slightest sign of mismatching of genes. There is none. Every single gene on every one of Cyrea’s chromosome has its counterpart in David’s.”

  “Based on this alone, you two are more genetically alike then a full quarter of Leinians are with each other naturally.”

  “When we discovered that, our first thought was that David was a Leinian, abducted to Earth and somehow altered to look like a human.” David would have snorted his denial at them, but held it in when he saw the intense looks in their eyes. They really wanted him to be just that. Anything to explain the impossibility.

  “Our computer people started hacking your adoption records last night. I’m sorry to say that they didn’t get very far. But even so they found enough to make that very unlikely.” David was briefly shocked as he realized where their thoughts had led them. But he shouldn’t have been. Their actions were completely logical. In their shoes he would have done the same.

  “We found your mother’s records, and the details of your birth, and the one thing we do know is that you were an absolutely normal child. Your mother at least was human.” It was disturbing, as he wondered how far they had gotten. How much more did they now know about his past than he himself did? He had never tried to contact his birth parents, believing instead that if they had chosen to give him up, that they weren’t worth his time. Besides, he’d always imagined they were probably teenagers having had kids far too young, probably after experimenting with drugs and alcohol. It could of course be worse. He could be a child of rape or incest. In truth, he wasn’t sure he wanted to know about his past. But suddenly these people did know. They could answer all the questions he’d never wanted to ask. All he had to do was ask.

  He held his tongue, striving to keep control of his warring emotions, and let them talk around him. He hoped none of them noticed. Cyrea squeezed his hand though, understanding his distress and telling him one thing more important than the rest. He was a very lucky man. He squeezed her hand back, thanking her. Then he saw Dr. Pearal staring at him, impatiently, and realized his lapse hadn’t gone unnoticed. He nodded back, letting the man carry on with his story.

  “This morning, when we’d gotten far enough to confirm that you are human, we grabbed some of the other locals, and extracted samples from them, making sure they knew the reason. And while we haven’t yet gotten as far as we have with your samples, the signs are they are just as fertile with our people.”

  David groaned, imagining the response when he next saw them. First they’d blame him for having made them go through that same, painful procedure. Then they’d embarrass him as a father to be. Something that would no doubt involve endless gallons of alcohol, country dancing and bad music. Then would come the practical jokes. Mountain humour wasn’t exactly subtle.

  “At least Alice will be happy! Not only did she bring us together, now she’ll say she expected this all along.”

  “I suppose she’ll expect to be a god-parent!” Cyrea kissed him tenderly, trying not to laugh, understanding that he was finally going to be subjected to at least a little of the same embarrassment as she had suffered. But he was too happy to care. Their daughter was beautiful.

  “And have you told Ayer and Rebecca, and also maybe, Dafi and Heather?” David thought he had to ask, and from the looks on their faces saw that they hadn’t even thought about it. He looked into Cyrea’s eyes as she looked back into his, both realising the same thing. Again there could be others going through this same thing, just like them, never suspecting a thing.

  “Dafi and Heather?” Either the doctor wasn’t particularly good on gossip, or else he didn’t watch the local Leinian news. While somehow having managed to keep their relationship off the cameras, they had moved in together at least a few months before, renting Mrs. Newman’s cottage on the Green Lake. While they refused to say anything more, they had been reported as being very happy.

  Cyrea explained, while David wondered if the pair had even considered the possibility. Cyrea had told him on their very first day that children weren’t a possibility. But now they were learning how wrong they had been. But had Dafi and Ayer said the same thing to their mates? And would they now suddenly be having kittens at the thought and rushing out for contraception? It was in some ways quite funny. But then it could already be too late.

  Then he had his own kittens at the thought of them not knowing. If they never thought this was a possibility and the women started developing morning sickness, they might go and visit the doctor, most likely a human doctor. He didn’t want to imagine the reactions to the first ultra-sound. No sooner had he explained then several pairs of feet started running from somewhere behind the army of doctors facing them.

  “I suspect that may not be as bad as you fear.” The dry tones of Ayn Lar came from immediately beside them, and they realized her boss had joined them while they were distracted by the doctors.

  “Doctor Hayes knows of us and even helps us with some of our research. He’s been one of our strongest supporters almost since the beginning, and in return we help him a little with his patients, granting him access to some of our equipment. If either of the two women turned up, he would know the story, and act properly.” David liked Lar. He had done from the very first day he’d met him. There was something about his completely matter of fact attitude that simply impressed him. Even when he was being told off by him.

  In many ways Lar reminded him of many of his army officers. They were simple down to Earth types who never really worried too much about secrets, only about what was right and wrong, and getting the job done. In the CIA those people had been harder to find, hidden behind extravagant aliases, and webs of secrecy. In the DOD no such people existed. The secrets had become the men.

  “I’m more concerned at the thought that those two couples might be taking no precautions believing there was no need, and then finding out too late that there was. I do not want either of them to have a baby until they’re ready for it. Anything else could be a disaster.” Which in itself was an interesting view for a Leinian. Children were expected from the beginning of a relationship for them. Lar was starting to develop some human understanding of the situation.

  Unfortunately David agreed entirely. Dafi and Heather he knew next to nothing about, though Heather at least had seemed fairly mature about things. But it was Ayer and Becky who really worried him. A surprise pregnancy could blow their relationship out of the water. Or bring them together permanently. It would have to be handled very carefully.

  “How are the youngsters doing at the moment?” David suddenly felt guilty as he realized he hadn’t kept up with them for at least a couple of weeks. Though as Cyrea had pointed out, they had been busy with other things, and the young couple had gone on another short holiday in the middle of it all. But it still wasn’t good enough.

  “Not too bad, I think. Ayer is busy working hard, and Becky is taking to her classes like a duck to water as you say. But they still sometimes fight, and sometimes cry. Neither of them has strongly suggested leaving, though killing each other does come up from time to time. Counsellors still see them every day, and they tell me they have hope. Their bond is growing stronger. Besides,
Ayer knows Becky is his only possible mate now, and Becky knows there is nothing better for her away from him. That if nothing else seems to keep dragging them back together.”

  “We should visit.” Cyrea was only stating the obvious and they both agreed immediately with her. If anything David knew, they’d been remiss in their duties, and looking after the two youngsters was definitely one of his duties.

  “Absolutely.”

  “But what are we going to tell them? To start using contraception? Now after all the months they’ve been enjoying themselves freely? Besides we could already be too late.” Which was the problem. If they were still having problems now, throwing a spanner into their love life would surely not help. Not that there was much of a choice. An unexpected pregnancy would be even worse. And they could already be in that situation.

  “I don’t think we have a choice. Besides, they might welcome the prospect.” David thought Cyrea might be being a trifle optimistic with that, but said nothing. She could be right, and he suspected Ayer might be okay with the idea. Men didn’t have to bear the babies, so it was often easier for them. But Becky still troubled him. With her background the thought of raising a family would surely terrify her.

  “Let’s hope.” Then a thought struck him.

  “Can we do this in a different way?” They both stared at him, knowing he’d probably thought of something devious. They were right.

  “Bring Becky to the clinic by herself, and check whether she is or she isn’t, but don’t tell her why until after. A routine check-up. Then if she is pregnant, get the counsellors to explain it. And make sure they use the words blessing and miracle, - a lot.” If there was one thing he knew about Becky, it was that she still tended to think of Ayer as an angel. If she was pregnant, that would be the time to play the card for all it was worth.

  “And if she isn’t?”

  “Don’t tell her at all. Arrange some contraception, but for Ayer. That way, she doesn’t have to think about it at all, until she’s ready. In time she’ll hear about our baby and start to wonder. And when she does, Ayer’s already taken care of things so she doesn’t have to worry.” And it would be another thing for her to be grateful to Ayer for. It was lucky that the Leinian’s had contraception for both men and women. The longer they could put off the moment of panic for Becky the better. And if the counsellors could raise the idea with the kids before then, even better.

  “Until she wants to.” David carefully didn’t answer Cyrea, not knowing how to tell her that Rebecca might never want to. Like it or not, she had been hurt and betrayed for her entire life by her family. It would take time and a lot of patience before she would ever consider such a thing, and then no doubt, a lot of counselling. But for Cyrea, for her people children were considered a basic part of marriage. A goal. Marriage meant family, and family meant children.

  Their whole society was based around the family rather than the individual. It had taken him a long time to understand that, and he still wasn’t quite sure he could fully accept it. Some of it was fine. Voting on issues as a family seemed like a good idea in many respects. And the fact that Cyrea would be placed on light duties as a matter of course simply because she was pregnant, well that seemed like an excellent plan. But the understanding that money, such as they had it, was paid not on the work that was done, but rather on the needs of the family was a frightening idea. Not least because it seemed so reasonable.

  Here and now, David was almost a millionaire, even having bought an extra twenty acres of land. And while he didn’t spend extravagantly, or waste his money, it was good to know that if he needed something he could get it. And there was also something about the size of his investment portfolio, that told him he had done something worthwhile for his country. Bloody as his hands were, he had served loyally and been rewarded as such.

  As of the previous morning however, he was suddenly having to come to terms with the Leinian world. It wasn’t an academic debate for him any longer. It wasn't a tale of a distant land. If Cyrea was going to be a mother, he was going to be a father. As such he had to do the best he could for his child, his daughter, and all the money in the world he knew, couldn’t match what the Leinians could give her. Education, health, security and opportunity, the Leinians had the best of them all. It had been a long, sleepless night for him as well. Yet if he was having trouble with that, he couldn’t even imagine what problems Rebecca might have with it.

  She came from a privileged if abusive background. A world where she could have anything she wanted, except love. A world where money was god and children were a fashion accessory. A way of carrying on the family lineage. But not family. And a world where as hurt as she had been, she still had a place. And where, when her trust funds matured - he’d done some snooping on the net - she’d be rich again. Very rich.

  A child for her would quite possibly be a nightmare. Dealing with the ghosts of her own past, and praying fervently no doubt that she would be a better parent than either of hers had been, had to be hard, while at the same time knowing that she couldn’t raise a Leinian child on Earth, nor have a Leinian husband added an entirely new level of problems. Because to leave Earth, the only home she’d ever known, was to throw away the only security she had ever known; her wealth.

  The counsellors were going to be busy with her. They were going to be busy with all of them.

  Chapter Twenty Five

  “Babies? So it's true?” Alice was surprised by the news, but also pleased. Babies were always a good thing, and for a couple in love like David and Cyrea, they were a blessing. It was the start of a family. And being a grandmother she knew the happiness that family could bring. But the others in their little community when they'd heard the news had been less happy. Some of them, those with science type backgrounds, kept saying it was impossible. Those who watched too many movies kept talking about mutants and hybrids. And a lot of them couldn't see what the big deal was. People had babies, so what.

  She understood it though.

  Alice was old enough to have witnessed the spectre of racism. To have seen segregation in the schools and on the buses. And ever since the visitors had arrived she'd been seeing it again. Only in reverse. This time it wasn't dark skinned people who were being put down, it was humanity. Oh the Leinians were careful to never state it openly. They would never act on the idea. They probably wouldn't even have realised it was there. They were actually too decent to recognise it. But always there was this divide between them. The unspoken belief that their visitors were simply better people than they were. Smarter, more advanced, more civilised, more decent.

  So when the scientists had first come to her and told her about David and Cyrea having met, and what they'd found through their illegal bug, she'd felt the need to meddle a little. Not because of scientific curiosity. Simply because whatever happened between the kids, would be a poke in the eye of prejudice. It would help level the playing field. But now babies? That wasn't just levelling the playing field, that was mixing the teams! Turning football into their funny Fugue game.

  Lar nodded, confirming that the gossip was true, before rushing on to tell her about the more practical implications. The ones that might affect her people. For some reason he seemed to think of her as being in charge of the little community of insiders; or of those who knew about the visitors. She wasn't. No one was. But she had been there from the start and she was old. That seemed to be enough to make the others listen to her. And she supposed they would listen to her again, those that were thinking about relationships with their visitors that was.

  She wondered if there were any more. Four couples seemed like a lot. But there might be more coming. After all a lot of their visitors were young and single. Having not found partners on Leinia they'd thrown themselves into their work and they were often more available for long term off-world posts where others weren't. And there were a lot of young people around the area as well. A lot of young people who made a living acting as tour guides. There were also quite a few visito
rs.

  There could be more coming.

  Part of her wanted to laugh at the idea, though quietly of course. But Lar was right. There were practical matters to consider as well. Just not the ones he was thinking of. His goal was simple. He wanted to prevent any unplanned pregnancies. So he wanted to make certain that every member of their little community knew of the risk. Her goal was different. She wanted to keep the Leinians around. When their mission ended she didn't want them to leave. They were keeping her family and friends in good health. Keeping Redwood Falls solvent through their purchases. Keeping the local lakes and forests in pristine shape. And they were probably good for the world. Besides, they were good people.