A Thousand Ages

by D. E. Ellis

  “As I said way back, we have already justified our journey. We owe it to those back home to make as certain as possible that what we have discovered is passed on to them. Besides, with two of us out of action, that leaves a very small margin of fit people to explore, and also perform rescue operations, if necessary.”

  Thane was surprised to hear Bruce on the side of caution. Illness must have curbed his natural recklessness. Thursfield was all for further explorations taking place if possible. He was most anxious to get out to the forests himself. Then there was the mystery of the lake—what other strange creatures might live there? He had almost stirred them into further action, pointing out that they could make do with one exploring party instead of two, when Courton turned the scales:

  “I was all for further investigations until a moment ago, but it has suddenly occurred to me we are leaving Dunstable out of our deliberations. He can’t speak for himself, so we must give him every consideration. He is in no danger of dying, but I am not expert enough in mental troubles to do anything for him. In any case, I haven’t the equipment to give him shock treatment which may be necessary. It seems to me that we ought to get him back to Earth as soon as possible, where experts may be able to do something to restore his reason.”

  “You’re right. I was being selfish.”

  “I think it must be the terrible size of the Universe in contrast to the puniness of we men, whatever the reason, I now feel strongly that each human life is so precious, it must come before the thirst for knowledge,” added Wormald, surprisingly.

  There was now no question but that they should return to Earth as soon as possible. The knowledge that they were once again to embark on that perilous journey disturbed their sleep as, two days later, they rested for the last time before take-off.

  The ship behaved perfectly. Soon they were in an orbit round the satellite. Once in space, its immensity began to haunt each one of them. Unspoken doubts crowded into their minds. They had originally set out to reach Proxima Centauri; but something had gone wrong, and here they were, circling a satellite whose parent body was sixteen light years from Earth. What if there should be a similar mistake in the calculations required to return them home? What if the laws of relativity had even more complications than had already been surmised?

  As they retraced their course to the point where they had first awoken from their trances, Thursfield and Kenton set the course to carry them home. In some ways it was easier than setting their original course, as that was now recorded and could be reversed and used as a guide. Their chief difficulties lay in positioning the ship correctly for the final drive; and in countering the eddies and currents in space that had both assisted and retarded their outward journey.

  Arnot thought of his family. He wondered if they would find him changed or what ten years would have done to them. He pictured his sister, Pat, with boyfriends of her own, perhaps married. Suddenly he felt there was something wrong with the picture. For a moment he thought it was due to the fact that having been in a trance most of the time; he and his fellow travellers would only have aged by about six months. Then, like a blow, the rest of the ‘Theory of Relativity’ struck him—that although time would be shortened for the object moving near the speed of light, it would go on in the same old way for the object left. Some had argued that both objects were moving apart at the same speed, time passed would be equal for both of them; but Arnot had a flash of insight that the former theory was terribly correct, probably due to the unnatural acceleration of the ship.

  The world to which they returned would be a thousand years older! Their friends and relatives would all be dead. He thought of the changes in the last thousand years before he had started on this journey. It was impossible to imagine life in a further thousand years. Would they ever manage to grasp it, and become part of it? Would they even be allowed to? What would a man born in the reign of Elizabeth the First have done in the year 2300 A.D.?

  He looked at the faces of the others and wondered if the same thoughts had occurred to them yet. Should he tell them? Perhaps they wouldn’t get back anyway, then he would have worried them unnecessarily. It might almost be better if they did not get back!

  His gaze returned to Dunstable, attracted by a look of puzzlement he had just caught. The face that had been blank for so many weeks was stirring to life again.

  “I don’t remember coming aboard,” he muttered, half to himself. “We’re under way, too.”

  “Take it easy!” Arnot leapt to his side. “Everything is all right now. You’ve had a black-out for a while, but we’ll soon put you in the picture again.”

  “Black-out? No, not quite that. The last thing I clearly remember is scrambling over rocks and thinking it was time we turned back. Since then my mind has been full of voices calling me. Strongly at first, till I felt I couldn’t resist, that I must be with them. Lately they have grown very faint. I can’t hear them now. How long have I been out of my mind?”

  His manner reassured Thane that his memory was only impaired with regard tot he period he had been under the influence of the gas. They had several days to enlighten him on all that had happened during that time. Meanwhile the awakening had rather shocked Dunstable; so Courton hastened to attend to him and saw him comfortably settled into his berth with a sedative.

  “I suppose there’s a limit to the powers of that gas. Once we got him out in space, it lost its influence. I must say things have turned out better than I had hoped. I really thought we should have to put him in the ‘long sleep’ still out of his mind,” remarked Arnot, when he returned.

  “I don’t think the influence of the gas has lasted all this while, else we should surely have been affected in some way ourselves. I’m sure I caught a whiff of it at the same time as Gordon did, but it had no effect. I’m of the opinion that, once the gas had made him receptive, he came under the influence of some form of hypnosis. These voices he mentions are most interesting. Mental telepathy on the part of those frog creatures I should think. Their brains were sufficiently developed for them to be regarded as intelligent, though it was impossible to judge to what degree. It’s possible he may have some important things to tell us when he has recovered.”

  Dunstable seemed his old self when he woke up. He was amazed at all he had gone through without the slightest knowledge of what was happening.

  “The voices—could you understand what they were saying?” asked Thursfield eagerly.

  “Voices? Well it wasn’t exactly sound I heard. There were no words. It was rather a series of impressions, feelings, longings. Things that have impact on the senses. Occasionally, there were pictures.”

  “Could you make sense of any of it? Did you know where the thoughts came from?”

  “It all made sense at the time. It was something you don’t stop to think about, like breathing, walking erect and countless other things we do automatically. I couldn’t tell you exactly what kind of creatures issued the thoughts, and yet I was one with them. I mean to say that I seemed part of a mass mind.”

  “could you capture some of those impressions for us now? If you could isolate some of the experiences you took for granted, we might be able to build up a picture of life on the satellite.” Thursfield was elated that there might be a chance of completing the picture even at the eleventh hour.

  “Well, I’m sure they live in water most of the time but they are also able to live on land once they are fully developed, I suppose you could compare them to frogs in physical development, but there it ends. They have learnt how to cultivate the sea-beds—they do not normally live in the river—and their aesthetic senses are quite highly developed. Their art is difficult to describe. It’s translated into terms of movement rather than sight, of thought patterns rather than sound. They live in small family groups, but are ever conscious of belonging to one great family. Once in its lifetime, each creature makes a journey from the sea to the continent. Then the procedure is always the same—overland to the source of the river—then back
to the water again—carried by the rising torrent to their birthplace, there to mate, spawn and start the cycle over again.”

  “There’s so many questions to ask, and such a short time left to ask them in. For instance—do they travel overland during the cold period? Have they domesticate any other creatures? Or are they the only creatures on the satellite?”

  “Yes, like the trees, they are capable of withstanding extremes of temperature, although, normally, they prefer the more equable temperatures of the sea, which does not completely freeze. They have no knowledge of any other types of creatures on the satellite …”

  “It looks as though our time is almost up,” interrupted Arnot, as Bruce Kenton joined them. Thursfield had left him making the last intricate calculations. It was now his turn to check it. With the aid of the small electric computator, which they used freely at every stage of their calculations, this would not take long. There would be a short period for him to complete his notes, while Arnot set the controls. Then the history of the satellite, Demeter, would have to be closed.

  At last the ship was on the course provided, and the controls set. Arnot and Wormald, who had been assisting him, returned to the main cabin. Everyone was now assembled there.

  “Let’s get it over with,” said Bruce, and valiantly received the first injection. Soon it was over for each of them.

  Chapter 6

  Life came once more to the Unisphere. This time it was Arnot who regained consciousness first. It was no less painful than it had been the first time. Then he had been lucky to have the assistance of the others.

  It was some time before he could stagger to his feet.

  His first thought was to reassure himself that the rest of the crew were all right. He was amazed to see how close their appearances were to death, but their bodies appeared perfectly normal. He could only assume that, in a short while, they too would begin to awaken. He would then be able to ease their pains when the process started.

  He threw open an observation panel, but only distant stars met his disappointed gaze. A quick check of the control room gave him hope, however. Anxiously, he returned to the sleeping quarters, to see if anyone else was stirring. Bruce began to moan. Hastily, he aided him by rubbing and slapping his limbs. Then it occurred to him that something hot to drink might help. By the time he returned, Bruce was sitting up. He grinned weakly.

  “Are we on the right course?”

  “I don’t know yet. We seem to have covered the correct distance and kept accurate course, but so far there’s nothing in sight. I didn’t have time to check more fully before you came round.”

  Bruce got up with commendable speed, considering the stiffness of his muscles, and proceeded to the starradar. It could see further than eye or telescope. Thane focussed it in the direction he believed the solar system to be and juggled for finer adjustment.

  Another moan, and Arnot turned to see Wormald coming round. Leaving Bruce to control the starradar, he moved back to the sleeping quarters to help him.

  A shout from Bruce fifteen minutes later brought him rushing back, followed by the stumbling Wormald, who had got up before he was really capable. They gathered round the screen and watched a small ball on it becoming clearer. At varying distances from the ball they could see minute specks which could have been the nearer of the planets.

  By the time the others came round, the possibility of it being the solar system had become a certainty, and they were able to greet them with the joyous news. Thursfield gave them cause for worry by not stirring for several hours after the others were fully conscious. Nevertheless, before they could worry that he might have followed MacCallum, he was proving that he was very much alive and in good health by shaking Bruce firmly by the hand in mutual congratulation.

  They settled down to work out their course for Earth and make the adjustments necessary to avoid the various bodies in their orbits. It was while they were doing this that Arnot discovered that the two of them had a full realisation of the problem.

  “We must suppose the planets and asteroids and so forth have been following their usual courses for the last thousand years, unless we observe differently. I hope it’s not too much to ask for.” said Thursfield calmly.

  Thane expected Bruce to show some astonishment but he was outwardly as matter-of-fact as the mathematician. Courton, however, had overheard this bit of conversation and sat heavily on the nearest support.

  “Do you mean to tell me that a thousand years have passed since we left? I was so busy with my injections I didn’t really think about it before. But, now you come to mention it …”

  “Just think what objects of curiosity we shall be for their scientists,” chuckled Bruce.

  “Surely you don’t think …” began Dunstable as a horrid thought occurred to him. As if he could read aloud what was in his mind, Kenton answered. “Oh, I don’t suppose they’ll dissect us, or anything like that. After all we’re not a new species. All the same, they might treat us rather like animals in a zoo. You know, keep us under observation, to see what peculiar things we’ll do next.”

  “I suppose it’s quite possible. We would probably have done something of the sort with anyone turning up in our society out of the past,” Courton said, a little bitterly.

  “What about the ship?” asked Bruce. “Goodness knows how far technology will have developed by now. I expect this old bus is quite obsolete. Perhaps they have matter transmitters, or something, now. They must have had to face this problem before—since all the ships that set off after we did will have come up against the same thing. Of course, they won’t have arrived yet. Unless, that is, someone realised what had happened to us before any more set out. There must be records of some sort, giving them an idea we might turn up some day.” Bruce rambled on, alternately finding theories to raise their hopes and discarding them.

  Dunstable scarcely heard him as part of the words of an old hymn echoed through his brain, seeming singularly appropriate. “… A thousand ages in Thy sight are like an evening gone; Short as the watch that ends the night before the rising sun …” He, too, had been unprepared for the shock and found comfort in remembering the ageless words. Somehow, since being in space, his faith had gradually revived. There was an intangible feeling of a Presence behind the whole organisation of the Universe—not a person, but a Power, holding it together. There was even a feeling that he had been preserved for some purpose, but, as yet, he did not dwell on this, feeling that the thought was born of conceit.

  Arnot’s next remark cut short the speculations.

  “there’s nothing we can do for the present. We must go on to Earth if we wish to live at all. We shall have to decide our future course of action when we get there.”

  The familiar planetary system approached until it could be quite clearly seen without the aid of instruments. Not all the planets were visible, some being beyond the sun. Pluto, who’s orbit they soon crossed, was one of these. Mars, Earth, Venus, were just visible, as yet appearing no larger than distant stars. The sun itself, in spite of the clear vision obtained in space, appeared no larger than a tennis ball. Their course brought them nearer to Saturn and the travellers’ hearts rejoiced to see the familiar rings thinly encircling the beautiful planet.

  Their speed was so reduced now that it was several days before Mars was likewise visible. Their course took them even nearer to mars, and they were almost tempted to call there and see what progress had been made among the few colonies that had been established before they left. Kenton, in particular, thought it would be a good idea. Even the few more days required to reach Earth seemed too long to him. The old lure of the nightly pleasures of civilisation drew him. However, he was overruled and contented himself by bringing the Unisphere’s powerful telescope into play. Familiar outlines on the red planet became clearer as he focussed it. Then he gave an exclamation.

  “It’s no bigger than when we left!”

  “What do you expect?—Mars to have swollen up like a balloon?” jeered Court
on.

  “Fathead! The town, Geneva, it’s still almost exactly the same, just a bit more streamlined, perhaps. Maybe we’ve got that Relativity idea all wrong.

  Arnot looked for a long time. Memories of his interplanetary service came back to him. It was not so long ago in his lifetime. While he looked, a feeling of desolation came over him. It seemed to be reaching out from the small town. Then he realised there was no movement there, no sign of life. Even an object such as a plane would show up in the clear atmosphere.

  However,, he did not voice his thoughts and relinquished the telescope to Courton—so that they should all have a chance to see the planet, before it receded too far away to be seen clearly.

  Thursfield had been trying to contact Mars by radio meanwhile, but gave it up and turned his attention to Earth.

  “Trying to get a bit of music?” laughed Bruce as he watched him manipulating the controls.

  “It would seem that the relay system n longer operates,” was the meticulous reply.

  His small audience was silent. They were trying to picture a world in which there was no need of the stations that had been set up on the planets, their moons and various asteroids, to relay radio impulses as far into the void as possible.