Beyond the Event Horizon - Episode Three

by Albert Sartison

  “In what sort of cases?”

  “A first strike is legitimate when it is a warning before an inevitable attack.”

  “In practice, your interpretation of a potential threat might be erroneous.

  “Let us take the specific example of your civilisation and ours. Does your doctrine permit a first strike at our civilisation, even though we are at a lower level of technological development, and therefore cannot represent a serious threat to you?”

  “You cannot represent a threat to our civilisation as a whole, but you could well be a threat to our ships within the range of your weapons. Therefore a preventive strike in this situation is possible, though highly unlikely. Such an act of self-defence would have limited effect.”

  “So you reserve the right to take limited strike action against us?”

  “During the first contact, you struck at our ship, in direct breach of our agreement. Whether it was a technical failure or a deliberate attack is not as important as the fact itself. We reserve the right to appropriate reaction in the future, to prevent any repetition of such incidents subjecting our ships to danger.”

  Steve did not like this discussion, but the questions being sent to him from Shelby forced him to keep returning to this unpleasant theme. This was most probably at the insistence of MacQueen, who was observing the discussion from afar.

  “I believe I am not mistaken in my assessment if I say that neither your civilisation nor ours has any interest in conflict. What can we do, in your opinion, to avoid dangerous incidents in the future?”

  “You can withdraw your armed forces.”

  “You said yourselves that every civilisation has the right to self-defence. For this reason, in this situation we are obliged to treat your ships with caution.

  “Now I would like to return to questions of a scientific nature. As an astrophysicist, I am especially concerned about the timing of your appearance in the Solar System. Why now in particular?”

  “When one civilisation enters into contact with another, this question always concerns the contacted party. It makes sense from its own subjective point of view, but it is senseless objectively.”

  “So the timing of contact was a matter of chance, and you were not waiting for the right moment?”

  “Earth belongs to a star system on the periphery of the galaxy, so naturally this does not make it one of the first candidates for contact. It was just that its time had come.”

  “Concerning your proposal of creating a device around our star to trap its radiant energy. Why do you need the energy of our Sun in particular, rather than that of other stars? There are a vast number of them in the galaxy. You would not have had to ask anyone’s permission to use their energy resources, nor share it with anyone.”

  “We are interested in a joint cooperation with your civilisation. That is the main reason we are having this discussion.”

  “So the energy of our Sun as such is only of secondary interest to you?”

  “Not exactly. Energy, apart from anything else, is a universal asset throughout the Universe and is always of interest to us. Nevertheless, its value depends not only on its quantity and form, but also on its remoteness from centres of economic activity.”

  “So you do not plan to transport your part of the energy over great distances, but intend to use it here somehow, in the Solar System?”

  “Partly true.”

  “In what way?”

  “After completing the project we propose, your civilisation will make a great leap forward in the economic field. Mankind will have a requirement for goods and services that are new in principle, and that your industry will not be able to satisfy.”

  “Your first emissary expressed unwillingness even to discuss themes going beyond the bounds of our knowledge in science and technology, let alone make us a present of them. Have you changed your point of view on this subject?”

  “Our point of view remains unchanged; it is only the situation that has undergone changes. We are not prepared to provide certain technologies or knowledge to any civilisation at random. But a relationship with a civilisation that is engaged in close scientific and economic cooperation with us makes such an exchange of knowledge both sensible and mutually beneficial.”

  “You mean to say that if we cooperate with you, we shall gain access to new technologies? Technologies ahead of our level of development as a civilisation?”

  “After gaining access to the concentrated energy of your central star, you will enter a new era of your civilisation’s development.”

  “I seem to remember that you determine the level of a civilisation’s development according to the type of energy it has assimilated.”

  “That is so.”

  “But what about the risks? Your first emissary stated that when a civilisation is not ready for technologies, there is a danger, as it was expressed, of destructive behaviour.”

  Steve was so carried away by the conversation that he forgot Shelby’s instruction not to gesticulate and raised his hand to rub his chin, at the same time looking at the ceiling. When his hand came up against his spacesuit helmet instead, he remembered and withdrew his hand, refraining from this theatrical gesture.

  “The next generation’s demand for technology will not arise immediately, but only after Earth’s civilisation has learned to make good use of the increased amount of energy available for consumption. This will raise you up to the next level of development, and thus there will no longer be any risk of the destructive application of the new technologies.”

  “But simply knowing how to use a great quantity of energy does not mean that our civilisation will handle it with the necessary responsibility.”

  “Having gained access to the energy of a whole star, you will have to recognise its destructive potential. If you do not, you will face collapse or even self-destruction.”

  “Are you implying that we... either learn, or perish?” said Steve with a wry smile.

  “You have already reached a certain level of development and have created some of the mechanisms needed by a civilised community to protect itself from irresponsible behaviour with new technologies. Therefore we consider that the risk of an unfavourable development of events is low enough to make it justifiable in this case to give them to you.”

  “You mentioned earlier that other civilisations exist in our galaxy apart from Earth’s and yours. From what you say, you even have experience of dealing with them. Is this so?”

  “It is.”

  “Among the civilisations you have come across, are there any that are less developed than yours?”

  “Yes.”

  “You said that for you, the motive for cooperation with us is for us to work together for our mutual benefit. Can you say, on the basis of your experience, that the less developed civilisations have derived any benefit from this sort of cooperation?”

  10

  The president was awakened by someone knocking softly on his door. He opened his eyes, glanced at his watch and sighed. Another 48 hours had passed, which meant he had to change his location again. It couldn’t be said that this caused him any physical discomfort, but it was psychologically disturbing.

  This innovation had been thought up by the security service. Usually, in the event of a large-scale military operation, the president was placed in a particularly well-protected bunker and stayed there till the threat had passed. The bunkers were hidden deep underground, or in some cases under the sea, and were sufficiently well protected against attack.

  In the aliens’ case, he could no longer rely on thick walls. The only effective protection was considered to be constant movement from one protected bunker to another. Fortunately, there were more than enough of them.

  The president got up from the bed and had begun buttoning his shirt collar when he realised that he was still wearing his trousers. After last night’s session, he had returned to his room and had been so tired that he had flopped on the bed still fully dressed, falling asleep as soon as his
head touched the pillow.

  He swore, threw off his crumpled clothes and considered for a second if it was worth taking a shower. There was another knock on the door, more insistent this time. No, there wasn’t time for a shower. The security officers responsible for him leaving the bunker at the appointed time were implacable. They would drag him out of his room willy-nilly, even out of the shower if necessary, and put him on the president’s ship, which would leave this place at precisely the appointed time.

  The president took some damp face cloths impregnated with disinfectant from the wardrobe and wiped himself down from head to toe. This made him feel livelier and more wide-awake. The cloths also contained toners of some kind, which penetrated through the skin. Whatever they were, they worked splendidly on such occasions.

  There was another knock on the door. This time the knock sounded more insistent.

  “Mr. President, you have one minute to departure. We must leave the bunker at once,” called the security officer from outside the door.

  “I’m almost ready. Wait,” replied the president sharply, already fastening the top buttons of his shirt. He wound his tie around his right hand and put it in his jacket pocket. He would tie it later. Looking in the mirror again to make sure everything was in place, he closed a small bag, hung it on his shoulder and set off for the door.

  The security officer was already raising his hand to knock on the door of the president’s room one final time before opening it with his own key when the door opened, revealing the commander-in-chief.

  “Well, let’s go!” was all he said.

  The security officer nodded and signalled to the guards under him.

  “We’re moving out,” he said barely audibly into a microphone.

  “So where is it to be this time?” asked John.

  “I can’t say, Mr. President,” replied the security officer. “We’ll find out as soon as we are on board the ship.”

  Passing through a long corridor, they reached a small hall, the opposite exit from which led directly through a covered passage to the president’s ship parked on the launching pad.

  On board the ship, everything was ready. As soon as the president stepped on board, the hatch behind him battened itself down automatically. In the usual way, the head of security took a random quantum number generator, decided their next destination, and began discussing the best route with the ship’s captain.

  The president had little interest in all this activity. He took off his jacket, hung it on the back of his seat and sat down, placing his things on a small table in front of him. A flight attendant brought him a steaming cup of coffee as the ship rocked very slightly and started to move.

  The president looked at the coffee for some time, deep in thought. The cloudy steam from the hot drink spread stealthily over the whole surface, and if one of the guards or attendants went past, it at once dissolved into nothing, as if blown away by a gust of wind. He turned back towards where one of the officers of his personal guard was sitting.

  “Tell Dennis to come over here,” he ordered him.

  The guard nodded and whispered something into his microphone. A few seconds later, the face of the head of the president’s security hung over him.

  “John?”

  “What do you think of the security situation?”

  “The alien ships are still inside the cloud, which is in orbit around the Sun between Earth and Mars. Nothing has changed, so the security situation has not changed either.”

  “But the aliens have shown a more benevolent side of themselves during the negotiations. Does your analysis not take that into account?”

  “No. That’s a matter for the diplomats. I am only interested in facts, not conversations. If there is a technical possibility of an attack, it means that a threat exists. All the rest is of secondary importance.”

  “Sit down,” the president requested. Dennis obediently sat in the seat on the other side of the table. “I’ve been jumping around from one of these damned bunkers to another for several weeks now...”

  The head of security looked aside. A shadow of irritation appeared on his face. It was not the first time he had had a conversation with the president about the security measures in the highest state of battle alert, and he knew where this was leading.

  “...and I see less and less sense in this. The aliens are God knows where, virtually in the orbit of Mars! Where is the sense in hiding in bunkers?”

  “Sorry, John, I can’t do anything about it.”

  The head of security could not stand this moaning about security measures. Every time he had taken part in such a conversation, the president had put him in the very awkward position of having to refuse the head of state. The president knew this and, being in the habit of manipulating people, hoped that he would give way. But Dennis was implacable.

  “OK, fine, I understand. But could you at least tell me when we can hope to see sunlight?” sighed John.

  “That doesn’t depend on me.”

  “All right then, what do the aliens have to do for the threat level to be reduced?”

  “It’s hard to say. If we could see through the cloud, then maybe...”

  The president looked at his coffee, still standing untouched in its place on the table in front of him, giving off a stimulating aroma.

  “So if the cloud disappears, you’ll let me out of my cage?”

  “If it disappears and they all stay where they are now, we can talk about it again.”

  “I need your word on that.”

  “My word? No, no promises.”

  The president gave him a long piercing look, but the head of security withstood it. Finally the president gave in.

  “Dennis, you do your job excellently,” he said, and clapped his defender on the shoulder. “That was a test of strength and you passed it,” he joked.

  Dennis only gave a sly smile.

  “Yes, of course it was. Is there anything else?”

  “That’s all.”

  As soon as Dennis had left, the president picked up his tablet and composed a short message. After sending it, he put the tablet back on the table and leaned back in his seat.

  11

  “Every civilisation comes up against both advantages and disadvantages in the process of its development, regardless of whether it takes place in isolation or with the help of more developed races.

  “Objectively, cooperation with more developed civilisations speeds up development, but a subjective assessment of the result of cooperation depends on the particular cultural features of the less developed race.”

  “And what is your prediction in our case?”

  “We are not sufficiently well acquainted with your culture to be able to make such predictions.”

  “Then which factors have the greatest influence on the success of cooperation?”

  “The particular cultural features and the civilised values ensuing from them. Civilizations differ considerably in their desire to open up new worlds and develop technologically. Some prefer an isolated existence, others long to expand to the stars and widen their sphere of influence. These are the ones that are more likely to actively seek cooperation with more developed civilisations, and more likely to succeed in this aim.”

  “Those races which do not themselves seek help from outside, but want to live in isolation – why do they prefer to do this?”

  “Autonomous development is an inherently evolutionary process, but progress brought in from outside is revolutionary. In the first case, the race has more time to compensate for the negative tendencies ensuing from progress than when the development process is explosive.

  “Civilisations with a culture in which autonomous tendencies prevail regard their own uniqueness as an aim in itself. They are content with what they have. They are inclined to underestimate the advantages of expansion and overestimate its disadvantages.”

  “So when a more developed civilisation visits a less developed one, the disadvantages of such an event are no
more than a subjective opinion. Could you assess such interracial cooperation on the basic of objective factors?”

  “What factors do you have in mind?”

  “For example, the population level before the contact, and, say, ten years after it.”

  “Population level does not reflect the situation adequately.”

  “Why not?”

  “Your own industrial revolution drastically increased labour productivity and solved a great number of problems in the supply of prime necessity goods for the general population. The ever-rising living standards initially served to increase the population, but at a certain point, the birth rate began to decline. This did not mean a civilisation in recession, it was only a phase change in reproductive behaviour.”

  “I agree,” said Steve, after thinking it over. “But what parameters do you consider important in assessing the usefulness or harm of cooperation?”

  “Mainly the economic statistics. The level of production of high-technology goods and how sophisticated they are.”

  “But the size of the economy and technology level are no indication at all that a civilisation has begun to live better. Just take any economy and put it on a war footing, and its output and technological development will suddenly advance by leaps and bounds. After all, it is always the military industry which produces the most technically advanced products. Yet for most of the population, this means a reduction in living standards.”

  “This does not contradict our approach to assessment. In offering our cooperation, we are giving you the opportunity of accelerated development. Whether a civilisation can make use of this for its own benefit depends entirely on the civilisation itself. We do not interfere in internal politics.”

  “And have there been examples which, in your opinion, were unsuccessful?”

  “On the whole, it can be said that the civilisations cooperating with us have not become any worse off as we understand it.”

  “Then what are the political and social risks of such cooperations?”

  “A change in conditions always changes the status quo of any civilisation. Society is naturally divided into those who gain from the new rules of the game, and those who do not.”