A Paradox in Retrograde (4 page)

Soon the guards baring the needed tools arrived, accompanied
by the lord mayor himself.

The men there soon began to erect a scaffold stout enough to
support the weight. With hand tools the three large beams were
notched and tied into a simple A-frame. The ropes and pulleys
were attached and the hoist was pushed into and upright position
and lowered into the previously dug holes.
While this construction continued Grunhuf, the lord mayor of
Baldur approached Landaus as he stood with his son watching the
construction of a hoist. He was middle aged and a little soft in the
mid section. He would often wear loosely fitting garments to hide
this fact. Today would not be the exception. He was wearing the
uniform of his office a royal blue set of trousers and a lapel less
jacket. Over his shoulder was draped a gold brocade sash that was
the symbol of his position. Atop his balding head was a crow's
nest of curly grey hair that fluttered in the breeze coming off the
beach. He spoke to them, "Greetings to you Landaus, and to you,
young Ibsen." "Lord Mayor what a pleasant surprise." "I doubt it
was either a surprise, or that it's pleasant." To which Landaus reacted with a hearty laugh. Ibsen looked on confused by the interaction. Grunhuf was similar in age to Landaus, that's however
where the similarities ended. For years they had managed to work
through there differences for the sake of Baldur and in doing so
had grown close. Grunhuf as lord mayor perhaps took his position as such a bit too seriously. Though the position was for the
most part ceremonial he insisted that his input be included on the
major issues. This one sticking point sometimes irked Grunhuf
when it came to Landaus was that he preferred to act first and discuss later.

This time Landaus would take all the consultation he could get.
So he asked him.

"Grunhuf what do you make of this object?" Grunhuf put his
hand on his chin and pondered a moment before he answered.
"Well firstly, it is plain that though this object had been wrought
by men, it was not a product of our making. There currently existed no technology capable of such sublime mastery of material.
This object is without precedent."

"Now how then can one tell the antiquity of such an object if it
has no precedent?" Landaus asked.

"Why do you ask question of which you already know the answer?" Gesturing toward the debris The Mayor responded,
"We've been finding these objects for centuries and we know no
more now than ever. I dare say however that this find is by far the
most interesting and complete object ever discovered, excluding
the crystal room of course." An expression of surprise came
over Grunhuf's face as he realized the significance.

"I see where you're going with this. Surely if this object and the
crystal room are from the same culture, there should be some
reference to it there. That's a good point we should make this
information known to chief mistress Xora keeper of the books as
soon as it is practical."

They watched as after much delay the shining silver object
drawn by cart animals and makeshift pulleys, began to rise
slowly upward. Ibsen watched in rapt attention as the primitive
mechanism moved the seemingly unmovable. Before long it was
standing erect on its three wing shaped legs. These legs to Ibsen's untrained eye looked not unlike the flights on an arrow.
After this was accomplished the draft cart was repositioned and
the hoist was rearranged. Soon the object was again lying on its
side in the back of a sturdy cart. The men then carefully tied the
cylinder down with stout rope to secure it for the trip back to
Breideblic. Ibsen climbed upon the cart so to stake his claim. He
rode along as the cart made its bumpy ride up the causeway. His
father following the procession, watched as Ibsen waved from
the cart as it slowly rose into the distance. Beneath the stone
arch of the citadel the procession passed. Seemingly the whole
of the town was there present to witness its arrival. The work
men again raised the hoist and lowered the object on the flat
stone surface of the central courtyard. This common area, it being the largest outside space within the walls was an apt place
for its display. By now quite a commotion had been stirred and
the people pressed in close to see it. Upon Landaus's arrival
there he ordered the guards to again form a perimeter around the
object. He ordered the workmen to use the beams and ropes
from the hoist to form a simple barrier behind which no one
save Ibsen could go beyond, at least for the time being. It was
hoped that here the object would go unmolested.

By now word had spread of the discovery. The news had
reached the office of Xora the chief librarian, and also to Alfred
the royal governor. Soon both would make their way to the citadel. Xora however would arrive first as she needed only to descend from her Cliffside dwelling outside of the citadel. Having
heard the story over the public service radio, she would be keen
to make her way down as quickly as possible.

She too like Grunhuf served in a mostly ceremonial position as
"Keeper of the Books." She however had the added responsibility
of chief librarian of the crystal room. Xora had attained her position after death of the previous keeper by merit of her intellect
and experience. She was a mere thirty years of age when she was
elevated. Despite her youth she was the ideal initiate. For the
keeper had to be learned in the great arch of myth, as well as actual history surrounding the origins of the crystal room. She being
a kind of high priestess of sorts had long practiced the arts required to interact directly with the data core.

Because of this she was eager to make the connection between
this new object and the crystal room. So after changing from her
night cloths into her official garb, she by means of a pilot less
conveyance descended down along the cliff face within the safety
of a steel cage. With a system of pulleys and cables the conveyance soon brought her down to the level of the common area with
the citadel. From there it was a leisurely walk into town.

Landaus and Grunhuf the lord mayor among the throng that now
appeared within the square spied her from a distance as she approached. They watched as her tall and slender figured gracefully
approached them.

Alfred wishing to see the object in person now made the journey.
The royal conveyance on which he rode moved quietly along on a
set of steel rails that ran through and over the rugged seaside
landscape. It was powered by a clock work mechanism that transmitted the stored energy of a tensioned spring. By this means the
ride from Tauburg, the capitol of Baldur to Breideblic took less
than an hour. The rail car soon reached the station at Breideblic.
There he was surprised to find that no one was there to greet him
at the station. Exiting the conveyance Alfred and his contingent
were forced then to walk the remaining distance from the station
to the citadel, unattended. As they made their way through the
arched gate, his guard forced back the crowd that now stood staring enthralled at the object.
It had taken the workmen the greater part of the morning to shift
the heavily weighted object to its current location within the
great court yard of the citadel. It now stood there tall and perfect
in form, in the full light of the noon day sun. To all those there
the object seemed to command their attention, for upon its surface could be observed the passing reflections cast in flawless
mimicry. Like the first light shining through the spring time
leaves these images held there within its mirrored surface
danced with a mercurial fluidity. As if hypnotized within a halo
of imagery those there could do little else but to be drawn into a
euphoric gaze.

Landaus spotted Alfred and suddenly realized in all the excitement he had forgotten to report for duty that morning. So he said
to Xora and Grunhuf. "How stupid of me, I've completely forgotten about the governor. He is here now, there by the Arch."

"You shouldn't worry about it you were handling things around
here I'm sure he will understand", said Xora.

"I sure hope your right. I can't see anything, where is he?" added Grunhuf. They looked out upon the crowd there assembled.
They strained to see so but could not. Landaus pointed in that
direction. Their eyes followed searching in that direction until
they caught a glimpse of the brightly colored garb worn by the
royal guard. There in the distance they spied the white regalia of
the governor among his contingent. Grunhuf said, "I see him,
we'd best be along we should have him waiting too long. The
trio then was off pushing their way toward him through the
crowd.

After several minutes they reached the circle of guards that
stood protecting him. The guards instantly recognized Landaus
and allowed him into the circuit. He vouched for the mayor and
Xora's entrance and they too were allowed in. Alfred was annoyed with Landaus, and did not wish or try to suppress it. In a
voice loud enough to be heard over the grumbling crowd he then
let loose a tirade. "Landaus just what kind of show are you running for me around here? You have been appointed to this position for the sole purpose of acting as my eyes and ears in my
absence. This kind of demonstration is ill suited for a place as
revered as Breideblic. What were you thinking man?"

Landaus responded respectfully, "Your grace, I humbly request
that you try to understand. My first concern was for the safety of
the object. I feared if we had left it there upon the beach there
mightn't be much left to it now. I understand this is not the ideal
situation, however we now have a rare opportunity to study in
detail something of the forerunner technology." Alfred stood for a
moment and pondered his argument. Having heard him out, he
now accepted his reasoning, and decided he would allow it here
for now. "Alright Landaus, you've sold me. I've decided I will
allow this for the sake of prudent science. However I have a question for you. Who exactly will be conducting this investigation?"
Landaus was keen to prove his worth in such matters so he spoke
assuredly. "I sir will act as royal liaison and site manager." "Yes
but who will be conducting the actual scientific work?"

"Forgive me my grace, again I have forgotten. I meant to make an
introduction earlier." "Better late than never I suppose."

"Your grace may I introduce to you the keeper of the books and
chief librarian, Lady Xora." Alfred to the ladies was always
charming and this time was no exception. She presented her hand
to him and in an uncharacteristic gesture bent down and kissed
her hand. He rose up and looking into her with his pale blue eyes
and said, "My lady I am charmed. Please forgive my earlier outburst as I felt it necessary for expedience sake. Of course I shall
make my office available to you during this endeavor."

She smiled and nodded politely and said. "I would be honored to
accept the assistance of such a fine and up standing servant of the
people." Having never been assigned that moniker he didn't
know quite how to take it. While eyeing her he decided she could
have only meant it in the best possible meaning. "Grunhuf please
make available to the lady any resources she may require under
my authorization. As for you Landaus take control of the citadel
guard and draw from it any manpower you may need. In the
meantime, please escort this rabble from these premises."

"Yes Sir."

Landaus summoned the sergeant of the guard and ordered him to
form a line with the men there available and begin to push the
mob back out through the gate. The order was relayed and with
batons extended the men moved slowly forward. As the throng
emptied the space Landaus, Xora, Grunhuf, and the Governor
stood now before the object in the relative quiet. Ibsen feeling
he had a stake in all this was there too. He hid himself behind
the object intent on listening to the proceedings. The men by
now had just about finished driving the people from the plaza.
As the last of the stragglers passed, the sergeant placed the bolt
locking the massive door that hung heavily within the great
arch.

Ibsen from his hiding place listened intently to the conversation
between his father and the others. He heard the older gentleman
dressed in white speaking and gesturing in a commanding tone
to the others. Alfred was not gifted in the ways of science, but
he did know how to get to the bottom of things. So he was careful to maintain his charming exterior for Xora's benefit as he
probed her for answers. "What in all your experience can be
drawn in parallel to these phenomenon to which we have witnessed here today? In your opinion is this thing of forerunner
technology? Xora was impressed that he had know as much as
he did. So she sought to give him an answer worthy of the question. "Why your grace, you have asked the question that has
been stirring in my head since I've first laid eyes upon it. I must
admit my inclination is to assume it is. However there is much
study to be done to prove it categorically. What we do know is a
well established fact. We were not the first culture to inhabit
these lands. We were certainly not the greatest. I could also argue that this civilization is merely what has managed to rise naked from the ashes of what came before. One need only look to
the crystal room. Beyond our faith in it, are we not a logical
race? Outside of that room are not all things explainable? We
have for centuries been captivated by a mystery. In our growing
dependence on it we have enslaved ourselves to a technological
relic that we have little understanding of." Alfred's complexion
had grown wan as the sound of her words began to tread close to
blasphemy. "Surely lady Xora you are over stating your point.
The crystal room has been a guiding light in these ever darkening times. Without its wisdom, would we now not be lost?"

"She responded without hesitation. "Don't you see, that's the
point exactly? I can not answer that question because we are
now so dependent on it that we no longer try to answer questions for ourselves. Despite how awe struck we may be to its
fantastic power, we are nonetheless enslaved by it." Alfred's
mood now seemed to have changed. An aura of grim duty fell
over his convivial expression. When he now spoke he spoke as
the Governor. Lady Xora regardless to your philosophy your duty
now calls you to provide facts, scientific not political in nature.
Your beliefs are your own business. Your responsibility to your
office as the keeper of the books requires you to find those facts
and those alone. Can you do that?"