Day of the Dragonstar (35 page)

“I’ve just taken the alien’s word for it,” responded Jakes.

“They’re here?” Rebecca said, her grief for Thesaurus washed away by excitement. “There are extraterrestrial beings here, now,
alive?”

“No. There aren’t even any signs of our hypothesized crew quarters. In fact, as far as I can see, there is absolutely no evidence of exactly who or what the creatures that created Artifact One really were. We might run across a few tantalizing clues as we examine the evidence. Nothing more, however.”

“Okay, Jakes. Come clean. How do you know so much after being in here only a few hours?” Kemp was irritated.

“Quite simple, Colonel,” Jakes said. “You know that holographic mural outside? Well, it’s clearly intended to instruct the intelligent reptilian life that the—the ETI’s, let’s call them—that the ETI’s foresaw or even
manipulated
into their eventual form millions of years ago. Influenced, no doubt, by specifically measured radiation emission from the illuminator. But the saurians not only had to find it first, they had to understand it. Apparently, the ETI’s left something similar for us human beings. For similar reasons.” He coughed. “You see, this is not just the only entrance that the lizards could use. It’s the only one that humans could use.”

“Wait just a moment, Doctor!” Coopersmith said. “Are you implying that they knew we were coming! That doesn’t correlate at
all
with the theories about this ship. I mean, no
stardrive?
What you’re saying is that this ship was put here in orbit
on purpose!”

“But why fill it with dinosaurs, for God’s sake?” Kemp demanded. “It doesn’t make any sense!”

“It does if you start thinking about Artifact One in a different sense. A different system of thought, gentlemen. A different approach. Now with the givens I have presented, what conclusions would you come to?”

“A gigantic ship filled with dinosaurs in their natural environment,” Becky began running down the facts.
“No
stardrive. A saurian culture purposefully nurtured and educated by the mechanisms of this vessel, but unable to pierce this far into the ship’s control section. A door that opens automatically upon the presence of human beings—creatures
anticipated
by that mural outside, in some form . . .”

“One last thing of importance,” Doctor Jakes said. “Come here.” He led them past a smooth, large mound of metal. On the other side stretched a mural of similar scope to the one in the corridor, yet obviously much more complicated. Instead of explicit symbols, computations and equations seemed to flow in a never-ending cycle. Lights flashed in various configurations of form and color. “As near as I can guess, it’s not only a teaching tool, but a kind of catalog of the systems and computers and other machines in Artifact One.”

“I don’t understand,” Kemp said. “I don’t understand at all. You mean to tell me that whoever created this ship
knew
we would find it?”

“Not only that,” Becky said in a somber whisper. “They also created us. Can’t you see, Ian! The
Dragonstar
is some kind of gigantic test-tube! A discarded test-tube!”

“If this is a test-tube;” Coopersmith said, “I sure would like to see the laboratory!”

“No,” Jakes said, shaking his head emphatically. “I studied this—this primer, shall we call it. That is not the indication that
it
presents. The ETI’s did
not
create life on Earth.”

”Well, then, what
did
they do?” Jashad demanded. He seemed every bit as enrapt with the unfolding explanation as the others. His followers did not seem to understand English. However, they seemed hard-pressed to keep their attention on holding up their guns, so fascinated were they by the whorls and swirls of color upon the mural.

“From what I’ve gleaned from the information presented here—along with some intuitive leaps of mind, I must admit, my conclusion is that they
shaped
life. They used this artificial environment to test life-forms. Or perhaps what we have here is the
reason
that dinosaurs became extinct upon the Earth. The shapers decided to opt for the evolutionary pathway that led to the development of mammalian intelligence rather than reptilian. Perhaps they themselves were family folk, and favored the development of the limbic system.”

“Wait a moment!” Becky said. “I thought that the creatures here were from the Jurassic age. Didn’t the extinction come later?”

Kemp said, “Funny. Mikaela just mentioned to me a few days ago that
her
conclusion was that there were creatures from the Cretaceous period as well, which would jive with Doctor Jakes’s theory.”

“You mean to tell me that the ETI’s spent millions of years hovering about Earth, shaping?” Becky said. “That doesn’t sound very likely to me.”

“Who said that they had to hang around all that time?” Doctor Jakes said. “They could have set things in motion, then come back to check how things were going every two or three million years. In other words, this ship is a
lot
older than we thought. But let me start from the beginning.

“I suspect that the ETI’s mission, initially, was to scout out the proper beginnings of life. According to modern theory, this solar system is about five billion years old, with Earth essentially being ‘born’ about four point six billion years ago. About three billion years ago, large amounts of oxygen began to be produced on Earth from the ultraviolet dissociation of water molecules and also perhaps from green plant photosynthesis. Things we might call plants thus produced their own nourishment from sunlight. The seas became a veritable broth of just the right chemicals. With electrical storms, there became enough variations,
mutations
if you will, that the first amino acids and other favorable conditions for the beginnings of animal life developed. Rather like the theory that if you stick a hundred monkeys in front of typewriters, they would, given enough time, eventually produce the works of Shakespeare. There are just so many combinations possible before life is formed. The amino acids, of course, are the basis of protein and also the essential chemicals involved in the DNA code. One-celled animals came into being. Changes in the DNA occurred, and so the cells changed, and then they joined into colonies . . . and, well, you know the rest. This took billions of years. We’ve some fossil relics that prove this. So, essentially, the ETI’s stumbled onto the Earth at about the end of the Permian age—and began their shaping. Inside of Artifact One, they developed a similar environment to the Earth’s surface and began accelerated experiments to determine just what the ecology should be in order to eventually evolve life. Do you notice that there
aren’t
any
mammals here? You know, at one time, I suspect there probably were, but they were all transferred to the Earth’s surface. When the ETI’s were eventually satisfied with the programs they had keyed into the evolutionary and ecological computers, they set Artifact One into elliptical orbit. They left behind their teaching device for the developing saurians. And they prepared the mural we see here for the express purpose of educating any creature intelligent enough to key the brain scanners. Evidently, we fit that description, as I suspect the ETI’s thought we would, if we could
find
this ship, and get to it, and into it.”

“But why was our first ship blasted? Why all the death and pain it took to get here?” Kemp demanded imperiously.

“I suspect that was our own fault. After all, it was because of our stupidity that the Snipe ran into trouble with what, after all, were merely devices to protect the hull from meteors and asteroids. And we were stupid enough to enter through the middle of the cylinder, rather than near one of the ends! I strongly suspect that we barely passed the brain scanner test!”

“Well, we
did
make it,” Kemp muttered grumpily. “And what good is it going to do us? The TWC has got the secrets.”

Jashad grinned.

Jakes sighed. “Oh, you militarists, you politicians, you stupid fuggheaded twits!”

Jashad frowned. Kemp frowned. Coopersmith couldn’t help but chuckle. Becky rolled her eyes.

Jakes continued. “Don’t you understand what I’ve been telling you? The ETI’s certainly weren’t going to leave anything here that would tell us how to kill each other, or how to gain power, or whatever. The stuff here is for
all
mankind. What we have here is not so much the keys to the stars as the keys to our own planet, to unfolding the potentials of the human race in our own environments. Now, that very well may lead to ventures into the stars, but only after we get our heads straightened out. The fact that the ETI’s exist tends to suggest that there are plenty of advanced civilizations in the galaxy. You don’t think that they’re going to put up with an Earth civilization typified by fascist, arrogant, anal-retentives like you, Phineas Kemp; or merciless barbarian terrorists like you, Jashad.”

Both Kemp and Jashad bristled, but said nothing.

“No. And as a matter of fact, my friends, I suspect that we start examining this storehouse of wisdom fast, so we can get our act together as soon as possible,” Jakes said.

“Why do you say that, Doctor?” Becky asked.

“When Mikaela, my men, and I first entered the portal, not only did the lights begin to go on all about, but this happened.” He pointed to the burst mound.

“Looks like a blown fuse,” Coopersmith said.

“Something like that. It’s the remains of a one-shot tachyonic transmitter. Evidently a signal was beamed to the universe when we entered.

“Folks, the ETI’s know we’re here now. I suspect they’ll be here sometime in the future to see how their little project has progressed. I wonder if they’ll be pleased to see what we’ve done to the Earth and to ourselves.” He turned to Jashad. “If indeed you do claim this ship, you and your holy TWC, you will also be the ones who will have to answer to those that come, Jashad. Do you think that the TWC is ready for that responsibility?”

Jashad said, “It is our holy responsibility It has been prophesized that our races shall lead the peoples of the world, under the leadership of Allah!” But the man seemed to invest no confidence in these words. Indeed, he seemed nervous, unsure.

“And you’re calling
me
fascist, Doctor Jakes,” Kemp said, trying not to sound arrogant. That little comment had hit home hard. “So, Jashad. What are your plans now? Clearly, this is not what you’re after.”

“I must confer with my fellows,” Jashad said softly. “Doctor Jakes, call your other helpers in immediately!”

Jakes did so. Morton and Sommers had to be cautioned not to do anything stupid. Mikaela looked at Jashad and company in astonishment, then moved to Kemp, who put a protective arm around her.

“I’m so sorry about Thesaurus,” she told Becky and Ian. “We had no idea he would rush in—”

“My fault,” Kemp said bitterly. “I should have had his suit fixed immediately. If I’d known.”

“Would you quit forever shouldering the bloody responsibility, Kemp?” Coopersmith said. “It’s nobody’s fault. I’ll miss him very much.”

“Other things to worry about now, both of you,” Becky said.

Jashad repeated, “I must confer!” He waved his gun toward the exit. “Come!”

* * *

Prodded on by the weapons of the three commandos with Jashad, they turned away from the gallery of alien technology and headed back through the passageway to the humid atmosphere beyond the entrance to the temple.

As they stepped out into the clear, facing a set of declining steps, Kemp heard the crack of automatic rifle fire. In the next instant, the three commandos were convulsing away from them, parts of their scalps and faces blown away by sniper fire. Only Jashad remained as he turned his weapon toward Becky.

Coopersmith reacted first, but he and Kemp smashed into the man together, deflecting the shot from his handgun, knocking the weapon from his grasp. The assassin lunged and caught Ian in the jaw with his fist and broke for the entrance back into the temple. In the moments that followed, Kemp saw that Jashad’s bullet had indeed grazed Becky and there was wound across her thigh which looked like the slash of a sword’s blade. Down below, beyond the steps of the temple, an lASA OTV was trundling toward them. The snipers had cleared their concealed positions and were also running up the steps.

As Kemp lowered Becky to the floor of stone, Coopersmith joined her. His look of concern was genuine. The reinforcements reached them and Kemp assumed command of the situation.

“Good work, Lieutenant,” he said to the first man who reached them. “What’s the status of the operation?”

“The guerrillas didn’t fare too well with their little plan, sir,” said the lieutenant, wiping some sweat out of his eyes. “We rounded up what was left of them. What the dinosaurs didn’t take care of, the saurians did. Those guys are a tough bunch of fighters! One of our point men had spotted you come down with those TWC guys so we figured the best thing would be to wait until you were brought out so that we could ambush them with the sniperscopes.”

“Yes, well . . .” Kemp began.

“I know it was risky, sir, but that’s all we could do in the situation, and it looks like it worked out okay.”

“Take Doctor Thalberg down for someone to look at her leg,” said Coopersmith, helping Becky to her feet.

“Yes,” said Colonel Kemp. “A good job, Lieutenant, but I’m afraid we have one more thing to take care of.”

“Jashad?” asked Coopersmith, a grin beginning to play at the comers of his mouth. He took the automatic rifle from the Lieutenant, then regarded Kemp. “Allow me, Colonel?”

Kemp smiled. “By all means, Ian. He couldn’t have gotten far.”

Without saying another word, Ian turned back into the temple entrance and retraced the steps he had taken only minutes before as a captive. It was an eerie sensation to walk through alien corridors which had a tinge of familiarity, still knowing that he was inside a chamber designed by minds so far more clever and superior to his own. His footsteps resounded with faint echoes as he advanced, watching for any place where the terrorist might be hiding.