Dragonstar Destiny

by David Bischoff

‘Changed?” Becky said.

  “That’s right. Apparently it was accidentally placed in an environment with different trace elements. The active one in this case was iodine. The creature turned into another creature ... It became an adult. Its previous form had been a larval one ... albeit a reproductive larval stage. The axolotl was a neotenous creature, you see.”

  “Neotenous?” said Kemp. “So? What does an amphibian have to do with anything?”

  “I present this as an example of neoteny, Colonel Kemp. So that you’ll understand. You see, many of the dinosaurs and probably the Saurians as well are neotenous. And I am living proof that human beings are as well.”

  Becky listened to this in stunned silence. It began to sink in on Kemp as well.

  “The radiation,” said Becky. “It served the same function on you as the iodine on the axolotl. But what you’re saying is ... you’re telling us that it’s a natural stage of human growth!”

  ”Precisely! It was designed into our genetic development by the Dragonstar. Only it never occurred on Earth ... There never occurred the correct radiation dosage. The sort of dosage these machines are equipped to give. So you see there was always another secret aboard the Dragonstar ... the secret of where mankind has been headed all along: to a totally new and different stage of development. And I am privileged to be the first to undergo that change!”

  “EMOTIONS!” said Barkham disbelievingly, staring at the alien face in the screen. “Emotions!” he cried, growing red in the face. “How would emotions have anything to do with it!”

  “Perhaps not the sort of emotion that you are presently expressing,” said Kii. “Not totally, anyway. No, perhaps what I mean to say are the systems that seemed to have been coordinated by your mammalian background as opposed to your reptilian—or even your more recent neo-cortex development which gives you your intelligence.”

  Takamura said, “You mean, the development of the limbic system ... the mammalian part of us ...?”

  “Yes,” said Kii. “The complex part of your makeup that bonds your people not with instinct, but with something more ... something quite unique that you’ve developed between your intelligence and your R-complex.”

  “You mean, love, hope, charity, affection: like that?” Barkham said. “The stuff that makes us different from old Thesaurus here, right?”

  “Precisely! It is unique in the universe ... And, from my analysis, I find it quite a new and wonderful dimension in life. It is just the sort of development that my fellow scientists and I dreamed about when we sent out the seed-ships ... You are the culmination of that dream. The human race has developed what we’ve been looking for: the key for continuance of life in the universe!”

  “I don’t understand,” said Mikaela.

  “It’s actually very simple,” said Kii. “As I intimated before, civilization among the known peoples of the universe has reached a point where it remains static, just short of stagnation. This point is fiercely maintained by those in charge. Any hint of its deviation is cut short ...

  This is precisely why the Dragonstar was recalled. There was the possibility that the sort of life had developed which did not meet the status- quo of the Enforcers, the Movers. It had to be checked and certified congruent with the political system that governs most of the known universe.”

  “So that was why the ‘stun first and ask questions later’ policy upon first contact was implemented,” said Dr. Jakes. “But why are they leaving you alone with us ... ?”

  “”The Enforcers awoke me specifically to deal with this case ... not a very pleasant bunch, I’m afraid. They handled it all quite badly. But fortunately I was able to convince them that I was a thoroughly good citizen and could be quite trusted to deal with you in the proper way. Which of course was analysis, pure and simple—and if contact was necessary, then so be it.”

  “So you’re completely in charge of this operation of analysis and contact?”

  “Completely.”

  “Then,” said Takamura, “do you mind if we ask your intentions?”

  “I was just coming to that. My intentions, really, are quite simple. You and your fellow humans must be released. And you must be returned to your home planet, Earth. There you must work to unite your nations and work toward a civilization that can withstand the might of the Enforcers ... who will surely like to snuff your kind out.”

  “But how can that be done?” Jakes said. “We’ve determined that the hull of the Dragonstar itself cannot withstand another insertion into hyperspace. That’s got to stay here!”

  “Yes, my analysis shows that is quite true,” said Kii. “For that reason, and for others, this is why this ship we are presently on must be stolen.”

  “This ship ...” said Takamura, “this ship has a hyperspace drive?”

  “Oh yes indeed,” said Kii. “It has also the majority of your fellow crew members, a goodly number of the Saurian race ... and much of the technology that will equip you later to deal with the Enforcers. And it will also have me, Kii, because I certainly do not intend to linger and face the music. Besides, you will need a pilot to help you get back to Earth, won’t you, and a friendly helper to prepare your planet for the coming vengeance of the Enforcers.”

  “Sounds pretty good to me!” said Barkham. “Whenever you’re ready to let us out of this pen, we’re ready to go!”

  “Just a moment,” said Takamura. “You’re telling us we’re going to hijack this starship from creatures who have the power we saw displayed. It sounds rather difficult to me!”

  “Yes ... and a little too pat,” Jakes added.

  Kii gave an alien sound that must have been a sigh. “I can only request that you believe me. Do you actually have any other choice?”

  Takamura looked at the others, who had the same surprised expressions.

  No. Of course they didn’t have any choice. They were at the mercy of this alien. They would have to believe him ... and if he was correct, the proper window on the opportunity for escape was only the length of time that most of the Enforcers were out checking the Dragonstar.

  “But what about Phineas. Kemp and the others who are still in the Dragonstar? said Mikaela.

  “All possible efforts will be made to rescue your crew-mates,” said Kii. “However, you must remember, there is more at stake than merely you or your crew-mates.”

  “More at stake. What do you mean?” demanded Barkham.

  “I think he’s talking about the Enforcers ... the intimation of threat to Earth,” said Dr. Jakes, wearing a thoughtful frown.

  “That is correct. And there is no intimation involved. The threat is real. The Enforcers are now aware of the existence of Earth. They have its location, and they know that human beings are a potential threat to their political hold on the universe. Doubtless, if all is left as it exists, in a few decades an armada will be sent to Earth, part of the program of our exodus from a dying sun. That planet will be enslaved. If, however, we can escape this system in this ship, we can head back to Earth. And your people, through the efforts of myself ... and others ... will have a chance to oppose the Enforcers ...”

  “Others?” said Takamura. “What others?”

  “That is a matter that you will discover later. Right now it is necessary to take action. So, I must ask you ... will you cooperate?”

  “Yes,” said Takamura, knowing that the others agreed with him. “Yes, we will do as you say.”

  “Excellent,” said Kii. “Then listen carefully. This is what we must do.”

  “COME ON, LINDEN,” said Phineas Kemp. “Don’t play coy with us. This is no time for withholding the facts. Tell us what you need to tell us ... and then tell us what we need to do.”

  Kemp was feeling nervous. He had noticed an almost indiscernible change in the chamber’s machines. A few rods and attachments seemed to have moved a bit; there was a definite taste of electric
al charge in the air. The lighting seemed a bit more various, the shadows deepened a bit in corners. Kemp’s hackles were up. He felt the need to get out of this place as soon as possible. Get on with business.

  Becky, on the other hand, seemed totally fascinated with Timothy Linden—or rather, what he had become. She wanted to hear everything. “Phineas, Linden did say that all this would lead up to that soon enough. Don’t be so impatient.”

  “So impatient! These aliens, these so-called Movers or Enforcers or whatever have got most of the others in captivity, and you’re telling me to be patient?”

  “You forget, don’t you, that only Linden knows the way out of here?” Becky said. “We’re rather a captive audience, aren’t we?”

  “Please, please!” said Linden. You are not my prisoners. It was necessary to bring you down here ... necessary for you, necessary for others, necessary for Earth, in fact!”

  “Necessary for Earth! What are you talking about?” Phineas demanded.

  “Has it ever occurred to you, Phineas Kemp, that the Movers are now bestowed with the evidence that another civilization is launching into space ... a civilization that might be dangerous to their civilization? And now they also have the location of that civilization!”

  “Dangerous? How could we be dangerous to such a highly developed bunch?” asked Becky,

  “I have perceived that their civilization has stopped growing, ceased developing, and is kept in check by the Enforcers. The efforts of the earlier Old Ones—those who sent out these seed ships—are now seen as subversive to the status quo. The potential of human beings for transformation from their neotenous forms into something of a more cosmic nature will be viewed as hazardous to the welfare of their society’s structure ... You see, although such occurrences are not uncommon in their own civilization—indeed, it is part of their life cycle—it is under strict political control.”

  “And you know all this, huh?” Kemp said suspiciously.

  “As I told you, I simply have a new Awareness!”

  “Well, then, goddammit, just what is this new Awareness telling us to do!”

  “You shall be happy to know that the Old One I mentioned before has allied himself with our cause.” Linden paused for a moment, his strange eyes unfocused, his tongue slightly protruded as though tasting the cosmic waves he was detecting. “Yes,” he continued abruptly, “my premonition has proved correct. Even now, as we speak, the others are agreeing to a plan.”

  “A plan?” said Kemp. “What sort of plan?”

  “A plan quite simply to hijack the Enforcers’ starship and return to Earth,” said Linden without emotion.

  Kemp felt adrenaline rush into him. “That sounds like my kind of plan!”

  “So then what we have to do is to get aboard the starship,” said Becky. “Not get back to base camp.”

  “Then we’d better get to it,” Kemp said. “Linden, can you help us get back?”

  “Of course. That is my intention now. We must all get back to the alien starship.”

  “Well, then,” said Kemp, “what are we waiting for?”

  “There is just one more thing,” said Linden,

  “Yes. Well, man ... or whatever you are. Spit it out!” said Kemp angrily. “Tell us, and then tell us how to get the hell out of this awful place.”

  “All in good time. In fact, I should think, from my Awareness, that there are faster ways to get to the alien starship than over a terrain covered with hostile creatures.”

  “A very good point,” said Becky. “But what about the Enforcers themselves?”

  “My Awareness tells me that they are now dispersed through the Dragonstar. Only one remains aboard the alien starship. And one stands guard by the hatchway. Now is the best time to go there.”

  “Then let’s do it,” said Kemp.

  “A moment, please If you’ll just wait a moment, there is that one more thing I mentioned.” Linden went to the wall. There he hit it switch.

  A panel opened in one wall.

  Across the chamber, another panel opened.

  “You will understand all, soon enough,” said Timothy Linden. “Soon enough.”

  He hit another button, and Phineas Kemp was blinded by the eruption of radiation.

  MISHIMA TAKAMURA watched the door open.

  “The guy’s really on the level,” said Barkham, looking over to the image of Kii.

  Which was fading away.

  “I will join you soon,” Kii was saying. “In the meantime, you might need these.”

  A table rose up from the couch. Upon the table were their weapons.

  “A gesture of goodwill.” said Kii. And then the alien was gone.

  “Well, hot shit,” said Barkham, wasting no time in strapping on a handgun. “I’m actually starting to believe this guy!”

  Takamura directed the others to take up arms as well. Only Thesaurus did not take one. “I am most troubled, my friend Takamura,” said the alien. “I hear nothing in this about my people. There are too many of us to board this vessel. What is to happen to us?”

  “Don’t worry, Thesaurus. We’ll make sure Kii provides for you,” said Takamura.

  Thesaurus looked bemused at this glib statement and Takamura couldn’t blame him. Just what would happen to the Saurians? They’d have to stay aboard the Dragonstar, most of them, as Thesaurus said. But this was no time to consider them, Takamura knew instinctively. He had to consider his own species. Here was territory well away from the land of ethics.

  After buckling on their weapons, they headed out to the corridor.

  “This way!” ordered Takamura, noting the angle that Kii had described. He just hoped that Kii would realize that they would have a difficult time navigating these corridors. They were certainly not the sort of ship corridors that Takamura was used to, namely the usual rectangular sort. No, these were manufactured from a different sense of functional geometry.

  For one thing, they were huge, designed to accommodate larger creatures. The corridors twisted and turned in all directions; it was difficult to tell even now which was the way that Kii had indicated.

  The party bumbled on for a ways. A few times Takamura felt more like a character in a slapstick comedy than the leader of a group responsible for the future safety of humankind. But finally, after a few minutes of this charade, they were confronted by a large creature lumbering toward them.

  Kii.

  His reptilian heritage could not be mistaken. It was in the way he looked, the way he moved. He was large and forbidding, but Takamura and the others were so used to dealing with the Saurians that this creature—clearly from the same genotype—was almost anticipated. Besides, the gleam of intelligence and benevolence in his large, liquid eyes belied any fierceness in his movements.

  The creature wore a torque around his neck: a translator. In his scaly arms, it carried a curlicued stick, with a light pulsing at one end: a weapon.

  It croak-snarled something, and the communication emerged from the device around his neck:

  “Greetings, comrades. I see you are ready for our adventure! Come!” He gestured a claw-like set of digits toward a sweep of corridor angling off to the right. “The single Enforcer still aboard this vessel is situated in the cabin of the vessel. We must deal with him first, in the manner l prescribed, before we can hope to steal the ship.”

  “What about the others?” said Mikaela. “Our fellow crew members.”

  “They have been retained in their suspended-animation chambers. Only you have been awakened,” explained Kii. “But come now, there is no time to waste!”

  “Nice to know that clichés abound throughout the universe!” said Barkham as Kii turned around and prowled away down the corridor.

  They had to double-time it to keep up.

  “I’m confused,” said Mikaela, “That, or I just wasn’t listening when Kii
outlined his plan. Just what is it?”

  “Simple,” said Takamura. “We provide a distraction after Kii opens the door. He comes in another way and zaps the guy.”

  “I hope it’s simple,” said Jakes. “But we just have to trust this thing.”

  “I just hope that he can take care of this so-called Enforcer so easily ... They seemed pretty tough to deal with outside.”

  “Oh, Kii assures us that he won’t be wearing the bubble force-shield in the cabin,” said Takamura. “No reason to.”

  “Yes, I don’t suppose the thing will be expecting a crew of crazed Earthlings charging his battlements,” said Barkham, joking to keep a tight rein on the fear that Takamura knew they were all feeling.

  “Actually,” said Dr. Jakes, “I suppose we should all feel complimented! I mean, creatures as advanced as these, afraid of human beings! Enough to want to travel all that way to wipe us out!”

  “Complimented?” said Mikaela. “I’d hardly use that particular word, Dr. Jakes.”

  “How about ‘persecuted,’ ” said Barkham. “Maybe they found out there were black people there.”

  “I suppose it is all related there,” said Takamura. “After all, Kii did speak of status quo. Although he did point out that there were many varieties of races tolerated by the Enforcers.”

  “Yeah,” said Barkham. “As long as they had the right color brain.”

  “It seems to be a tendency in the universe to discourage progress at a certain point in development,” said Mikaela. “Creatures get smart enough to get afraid of the future.”

  “You mean like us?” said Dr. Jakes. “I must admit, I’m feeling a certain uneasiness.”

  “Well, what could possibly happen?” said Barkham. “We can only die horribly. Or be stranded in strange alien territory forever. What’s to be afraid of?”

  “We have to concentrate on what is important and forget our own petty fears,” said Takamura. “We must remember that we are fighting now for our home planet. Fighting for all that we love.”