A Simple Truth (12 page)

"That means they are already well inside the solar system and at their present speed will reach the earth in about
seven
teen day's time." 

"I'm going to contact the WSA straight away
,"
s
aid Geoff firmly.

"Can you verify these figures Harry while I get through?"

Neither Harry nor Jean objected to this course of action.  There was no point in being secretive now
and no point in
delaying things for discussion.  The aliens had not only transmitted a hypnotic signal, they were now shown to be rapidly approaching the earth in a manner designed to avoid detection.

Such action was very sinister indeed and earth had little enough time to prepare for her uninvited guests.

8
   
H
asty
P
reparations

George Dent mopped his face an
d neck once again with his sweat-s
oaked handkerchief.  "This complex must have an air of uniqueness
,"
he said, "it must be set apart from all other buildings and establishments so that when people see it they know at once that here is something different, something to bridge the gap from what used to be to what will be."  And with that he stood still, breathless, his body refusing to carry him a step further.

A small group had been following him around, trying to keep up as he tirelessly stalked from one area to another.  They were grateful for a moment's rest.

"So far Mr Dent you have spoken only of how the complex should impress, not about precisely what its function will be or what sort of expenditure you envisage."  Roger Rycroft of Rycroft and Gardner, an established firm of Townsville architects attempted, somewhat hopefully, to elicit some more concrete information.

"That was deliberate Mr
... ah?"

"Rycroft."

"Mr Rycroft.  All that sort of information or such as is available will be supplied before you leave.  What I want to get over to you is the significance of your task.  This complex will be the centre of all human contact with the alien race.  This will be the birthplace of dozens of disciplines as yet unimaginable.  It will be a research centre, education centre,
communication
centre and much more.  People will investigate the aliens, carefully noting anything and everything there is to learn of them and from them.  Whole new branches of political and psychological science will be necessary to deal with the new order of knowledge, and this region will be the nucleus of it all.  I can't yet guess at the ultimate content of the complex or the cost of such a project.  But this I promise you, both will be large, very large.  Here is your chance of a lifetime, to exercise your imagination and initiative to the full, to come up with a style, to design not in detail but rather to capture the spirit of the new age in architecture."

It was hot.  And out here on the unsheltered plain the heat of the sun
was
merciless.  A small group of architects had been driven out to see the site for George Dent's dream, 'Procyon City'.

Dent was as usual leaps ahead of anyone else.  He had not been allocated any money for such a venture or even for the design exercise he was now asking for.  His philosophy was to act first and ask later.  It had always stood him in good stead in the past and he saw no need to change now.

The sheer magic of the man had worked again.  The architects were fired with enthusiasm and would each work personally on the project without the promise of any recompense for the effort or expenditure involved.  As Dent had said, it was the cha
nce of a lifetime; a
chance to make a unique mark.  Whoever contributed to the design of the final complex would be guaranteed fame and a degree of immortality.

Ranjit K
h
an accompanied the group and now followed as they strolled back to the waiting vehicles chatting eagerly about their task, already impatient to get started.  He smiled to himself.  No-one but George Dent had even thought of such a central complex.  It was no more than a dream, just an idea with no substance at all.  But so much momentum would be generated that in a few months the dream would become unstoppable.  It would come into existence just as Dent intended.

As he watched he noticed one of the drivers running towards them.  'Odd, must be something important
,'
he thought and quickened his step.  A moment later the man was within earshot and was obviously anxious to get his message over to Dent.  He caught the words 'aliens', and 'urgent', and something about
Mendeleev
.

Dent wasted no time in herding the architects towards the remaining vehicles while he followed the driver back to the leading car shouting "Come on Ranj something's cropped up.  Seems there's something unexpected about this contact that's turned up at
Mendeleev
.  Lincoln has all the details so we're going to see him now."

Back at base Dent rushed up the entrance steps two at a time then
past the reception desk and security
guard.  The
security staff
knew their job and did it admirably.  To the extent that Dent had to go back and use the palm print analyser before the
wo
man would allow him into the
building
.  A selection system picked out members of the WSA staff at random for positive identification.  The machines were a constant source of annoyance to Dent.  He had struggled to make the results of space research completely open and available to the whole world, but the security people guarded the place as if military secrets were held there.  No-one was specifically barred, but before admission was allowed full identification had to be provided and the reason for access declared, checked and approved.  The WSA ha
d
been the target for more than one terrorist organisation so the precautions were sensible if strict.

Dent slapped his right hand down on the glass surface and gave the guard a withering look.  He waited.  It only took about half a second before the small screen flashed the words 'Dent, Geor
ge, President WSA
,
Unlimited C
learance.'
No matter that Dent was recognised instantly, if the selector picked him out then the rules required positive identification and positive identification had to be made.

Half a minute later the door to Lincoln's room burst open and Dent made his familiar brash entrance.  Lincoln sat quietly with Kumar Elango, their faces grave.

"What's happened
,"
demanded Dent.  K
h
an followed him in, closed the door quietly and then seated himself at the small table, waiting for the story to unfold.  Lincoln described the call he had received from Geoff North at
Mendeleev
.  He explained about the hypnotic music and why its true nature had been concealed, even from them.  He explained about the source measurements taken at
Mendeleev
and Yakutsk, and concluded with a fairly precise picture of just where the source was and its present speed towards earth.

"Could there be a mistake
?"
asked Khan hopefully.

"Very unlikely
,"
replied Lincoln, "we shall confirm independently of course but it's a forlorn hope."

Dent didn't
speak;
he went over to the large window and looked up at the sky as if trying to see the approaching craft.  He was shaken, but his incisive mind was rapidly analysing the new situation and weighing possibilities.

At length he turned to face his colleagues, a logical course of action already clear in his mind.  There were no objections to his proposal, and no-one had anything better to offer so they acted immediately.  They prepared a statement and had it coded in accordance with international non-public information regulations.  The statement, a brief account of all the known facts was then transmitted to the government heads of the major world powers.

Reaction was swift.  Within half an hour Tony Naganda had been in touch with every one of his opposite numbers and was summoning Dent to a meeting of all government chiefs and their advisers to be held the following day at seven hundred local time in Mombasa.

Tony Naganda or Doc Tony as he was known to his supporters was a man of action.  Dent was not surprised that he had taken the initiative and felt sure that with him in the driving seat there would be no prevarication.  He only hoped that all could be persuaded to explore every possible peaceful avenue before initiating hostilities.

"Very well then
,"
said Dent, "
i
t's
you and I against the world Arthur.  Lord knows which way this meeting will go, or what retaliation will be proposed.  You have some knowledge of the possible consequences of any course of action and can back your views with sound argument.  I confess I am out of my depth.  In this case I have to be guided by your opinions, for my own part I wouldn't know what to advise."

Lincoln felt disturbed.  Dent seemed to be
wavering;
this was the first time he had known him admit to indecision.  "George, we have to speak with a common voice, surely you agree that we have to interpret any action as friendly unless it is a direct attack?"

"That's all very well in theory Arthur, but just how far do we go?  Things are seldom black and white
.  J
ust how dark does the grey have to become before we decide we are under attack?"

"That sort of argument can be used to justify hostility long before it is necessary.  It appeals to superficial logic but does not hold water."  Lincoln began to feel annoyed.  "The one thing to remember is that the aliens are not human and do not think or act like humans.  They can't predict how we will interpret what they do and so are likely to act suspiciously without realising it.  We can only be sure of ill intent if we suffer actual harm and are certain that they know it.  You of all people have to be convinced of this or we shall lose control of the situation completely."

Dent
smiled and
patted Lincoln's shoulder affectionately.  'The old fox
,'
thought Lincoln once more, 'he's just testing the strength of my conviction
s
.  Well he needn't worry on that score, the only thing to worry about is whether or not I can voice those convictions strongly enough.'

The meeting was tough, very tough.  Dent had anticipated the mood quite accurately.  The acute fear and desire for an all
-
out attack was very strong indeed.  And the situation was not helped by someone leaking information to the press.  It was predictable in as sensitive an issue as this of course but Lincoln had been deeply dismayed to hear the telecast version of the story while still on the plane to Mombasa.

"An unconfirmed report has just been received
,"
announced the grim
-
faced newscaster
,
"to the effect that the alien race is not in fact signalling from the star Procyon, but is transmitting from a vessel approaching the earth at great speed.  An attempt to throw humanity off guard was made in the form of subliminal and hypnotic sound pulses disguised by the music received recently and intended to intoxicate the entire population.  Fortunately this ploy was discovered and retransmission was discontinued.  No official statement has yet been issued but we are informed that an emergency summit meeting has been called to agree defence measures."

Dent had looked at Lincoln and his thoughts were easy to read.  The scare that would be generated would be all but impossible to counter.

There were no preliminaries.  Naganda took charge and ran an orderly if heated discussion.  Many
of the world's
military
decision
makers
were present
, either in person or via video link,
and it seemed that most of them had come not to discuss whether retaliation should be made but rather exactly what form it should take.  Dent and Lincoln felt as though they were trying to swim against a tidal wave, but gradually their arguments were heard and they struggled to encourage a more cautious strategy.  The line of reasoning most effective was fear.  The more Lincoln played on the terrible consequences that were likely to be wreaked on earth for any hostile action the more the others were prepared to listen.  By the end of the morning he felt that most were convinced of the stupidity of any rash moves.

A break was held at noon for half an hour to allow everyone to cool down.  Dent and Lincoln walked out for a breath of air to clear their heads a little.  Each felt like he had been fighting physically for hours.  The mental strain involved in trying to counter emotional arguments and instinctive fears from all sides was taking its toll.

Dent looked weary.  Lincoln realised that he was getting old and felt a stab of pity for his friend.  A very close relationship had developed between them.  After all they were allies fighting against the most deeply rooted human fear.  They were no longer professional colleagues, they were comrades in arms.