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"I'll just slip
into Kallatra's mind to pick up the sensation." They raised their drinks,
Kinnison said, "To
the Patrol", and they sipped. The extraordinary flavor and immediate
biological effect
produced no words but many appreciative murmurs.
"Excellent," Kinnison pronounced, still sipping. "Too bad Gerrond is such an
officious
brass-hat-he's really such a nice guy." He gave Kallatra a swift hint that a
brief dropping
of his tight screen would be welcomed, but there was no response. He swirled
the
remaining drops around in his glass, staring reflectively at them. "What do
you think, your
royal snakeship? You gave me the idea originally. Do I have a danger with my
Lens-to-Lens mass meetings? More than the obvious, that is."
"Probably not." Worsel waved the tip of his tongue under his nostrils,
savoring the
laxlo-like's bouquet. "Caution, but not extra caution, is indicated. We know
such
concentration of mental forces is dangerous. I can't get out of my mind what a
disgusting
parody of the Lens the threats from Unit 9-7-1 triggered. What Kallatra did
with Deuce's
crystalloid resonators was a pallid approximation. I want never to see such
evil ugliness
again-my guard will now be permanently up against a schizophrenic recurrence.
As I
said, the case can be closed, unless Kallatra has something to add?"
"There is one point," Kallatra said. "I believe that Tong had the
schizophrenic breakdown.
Worsel merely reflected that through racial telepathic empathy. This
phenomenon should
be examined. May I do so?"
Kinnison and Worsel looked at each other, reading each other's opinions by
their simple
glances, and nodded. "Yes," said Kinnison, "that is an excellent idea.
However-I want you
to keep in constant touch with Worsel." He buzzed for an orderly, who came in
to take
Kallatra to the adjutant for official orders. "We'll get underway for the
Purple Veil to-
morrow or the next day. Kallatra, you'll stay aboard the Dauntless. We'll
bring Tong and
the Chickladorian aboard, too. Rather than sending them on to Velantia, which
isn't
necessary anyhow, we'll take them to our base on Dyaddub. Worsel and Deuce
O'Sx will
leave as soon as possible for Dyaddub in Flame."
When Kallatra and 24of6 had left, Kinnison, his voice flat and impersonal,
asked,
"Satisfied?"
"As best as can be expected," Worsel answered.
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"What about that boy's mind-shield?" Kinnison said. "I've never encountered
such control
under such relaxed circumstances. I felt suspicious, meaning somehow mentally
uneasy.
Do you?"
"I'm always somewhat suspicious," Worsel said, and grinned, flashing his
teeth. "I'm a
pessimistic croaker, if you'll recall your own words. Anyhow, about that
shaded screen of
his, there's a reason. It seems necessary to guard his el-sike. I'll go along
with his
conclusions, especially since we've had an indication of what it might have
done to Tong.
As I don't talk or hear, not at all, like you humanoids, I'm used to mind
shields. With me
it's a way of life. But," Worsel pressed home the thoughts to express his
concern, "until I
get a chance to peek into the corners of his mind I'll have to rely on Mentor
and trust in
the Lens."
"I'll have a chance to observe his work with Tong here on the Dauntless, until
I catch up
with you at Dyadubb." "And I'll keep in touch through Tong. Clear Ether!"
Flame left the
Velantian system within an hour.
Worsel, on the trip to Dyaddub, planned to be briefed by 24of6 with the
details of
zee-tee, the Purple-VN-F-ZTP/TTP Project. At first, however, the paraman
entertained
him with personal anecdotes of his life as a "half-breed" and frequent
digressions on his
opinions on all sorts of topics. 24of6 had all the enthusiasm of a man of
flesh and blood.
It was a long time before they got around to zee-tee.
"It's a curious fact," 24of6 said, "that, in the advanced state of technology
of Civilization,
we've remarkably few examples of robots. Their advantages were long heralded
but they
never caught on."
"True enough," Worsel agreed. "I've encountered robots or mech-men from time
to time.
They never had significant intelligence. Invariably they are menials or
servants. Androids
and other look-alikes are, fortunately, quite stupid. I'm referring, of
course, to the
complete fabrications, Deuce."
"The reason lies in that peculiar ability we organic brains seem to have
exclusively-intelligence. I agree with you. Every robot that I've ever met was
a simple
servo-mechanism or a computerized calculator. Never of self sufficient value
to the Patrol
or Civilization."
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"The Patrol used robots one time to great effect," Worsel mused. "That was
when the
Grand Fleet defeated the invasion of Boskone through the hyper-spatial tube.
Millions of
beams were tossed about at the initial clash and a full eighth of our entire
line of
battleships was completely wrecked or blasted out of space in the cataclysm.
Not one of
our men died-because we used automatics, manned by robots under a minimum of
remote control. But that was some time ago."
"I know about that, of course. As a famous battle, it was well reported. And
my research
convinces me that the Boskonians used robots in their shock-globe, too. I
think that was
about the time their experiments on Dyaddub reached their height."
"What happened to their project? Why did it disappear?" "I don't know," 24of6
said. "I'm
trying to piece that story together." The evidence, he explained, was skimpy.
The site of
the Boskonian base was found after intelligence reports, meticulously
collected by Patrol
spies and agents, led a reconnaissance party to the planet. It never returned.
Six months
later another Patrol party came back in force, but the planet was deserted.
The caverns
were intact, natural ones and artificial both, the overhead lights in place,
the empty
buildings standing. But there was no evidence as to who had been there or what
they
had been doing. It took almost another six months to find the hard evidence
they were
looking for.
"Perseverance paid off," 24of6 said. "A Rigellian team was routinely scanning
the interior
of the planet when they discovered a mass of metal inside a quarter-mile thick
section of
volcanic rock. Excavation revealed an enormous bubble of partially destroyed
machinery,
an obvious oversight by the evacuating rearguard."
24of6 explained that when the dump had yielded up thousands of parts and
pieces to be
examined, a large Patrol base and research station was established in the
nearest cav-
ern, the quarter-mile cube. Further surveys discovered atomic elements, and
molecules
suggested that bodies had been chopped into pieces before being de-hydrated
and then
oxygenated. By the use of el-sike, the atomic material of the area was
examined for
sub-etheric frequencies impressed in the molecules at the top end of the
atomic scale.
"Did Lalla Kallatra work on that?" Worse! asked.
"Yes, Lalla was very helpful. And took some amazing readings. He felt that the
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vibrations
indicated that a battle had been fought. To the death. His feeling, plus the
material
evidence, led to his conclusion that there had been a spaceaxe battle. Sounds
crazy-the
victims of a space battle encased in rock, deep under the surface of a planet.
And
there's the sense that Lalla had that the men had been killed by the robots."
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