Notes from An Alien (11 page)

    Nii and Rzo returned with their arms full. Delva sat back at the table and held Morna close. Verluin returned with the children. Nii said: "Are we leaving?"

    Delva didn't respond. Her eyes were closed, her breathing was rapid, and Morna was glowing brilliantly. Verluin sat next to Delva and said: "Dearest? Is this the only way?"

    "Yes..."

    The children stared in fascination and Rzo said: "What's happening?"

    Verluin stood and replied: "Delva and Morna are going to induce a plasma shield around the cottage. We'll be safe but she's going to need more medical care than I can give her when this is over."

~~~

Seven were killed in the meeting hall fire. The six intruders, members of a new and thankfully small group known as the Ultra-Science Front, were stunned and en route to Territorial headquarters. Verluin and the family were fine. Delva was clinging to life.

    Morna continued to run Delva's vitals through her circuitry until she saw the indication that Delva was out of immediate danger. She alerted the hospital staff and Verluin and, before they could arrive, she said: "Delva, what you did was spiritual."

    Delva murmured something.

    Morna began a complex and well-remembered pattern of cogitation—the attempt to find a rationale for actions performed solely for the benefit of others. This time there was a path to add to the pattern—performing actions that will protect the lives of your enemies.

~~~

In the months it took for Delva to return to full health, the Worlds' Council had approved the exploratory flight of ShipFour to Angla-Palli. The research and development centers had installed sophisticated sensors on ShipFour, the crew had conducted a full suite of orbital test runs of critical equipment, and the laser that would power them home had been safely tethered to the ship. Launch would happen when Delva, Verluin, and Morna were on board.

    Delva had deputized a team of four Aklans to continue her scheduled visits to Local Councils. If the voyage to and from Angla-Palli, plus the time spent exploring, didn't exceed two years, she would only miss visiting twenty-four Local Councils. She'd made sure the visitation team was clear about keeping their activities focused on social and economic issues and keeping their religious practices private. She knew she could trust them.

    Morna had found the Aklans rationality and equity interesting. Delva thought it was nearly a miracle. She attributed the uplifting sanity and common sense of her husband to his training as a doctor, not his religion. She had made many mental notes to have a deep and long discussion about science and religion with Verluin and Morna. The slow voyage of ShipFour to a new World seemed like what others called a gift from God.

~~~

There was a nearly constant news feed coming from ShipFour. Delva had been right—the mission, beyond being of value in itself, had become a cultural bonding experience. It also was spawning the birth of a few more radical groups. The Worlds' Protective Force was always ready for intervention but, more and more, Local and Regional Councils were devising methods of self-defense. The Territory of Aklana had begun sending representatives to the Regional Councils to help them implement social and economic initiatives that might serve to draw the somewhat reasonable members of divisive groups toward more productive endeavors. It worked in some regions and caused dangerous flare-ups of violence in others.

    Most people realized that the exploration of Angla-Palli was going to introduce fundamental change in the Worlds' culture. Fear of change needed more education in principles that some saw as rational and scientific and others saw as moral and ethical. The radical groups saw this change as evil.

~~~

Morna was content to let the ship's systems analyze and store the data from the exploration. She was busy collating and refashioning her conversations with Delva and Verluin into a detailed set of recommendations for the Worlds' Council. She would call it,
Reasonable Faith vs Faith-Filled Reasons - Where Is The Balance?
.

~~~

Semul Zel, lead scientist for the voyage of ShipFour, sat at his console and wondered at the streams of color emanating from one of the oceans of Angla-Palli. He studied the previously observed plasma patterns that Angla-Palli danced within as it circled the Mother planet, Beli-Pallos. He found no mention of the activity he was seeing in the past month's records. They had just entered orbit and were close enough now for him to watch the plasma disturbance undulating, back and forth, across the nearly thousand-mile ocean, subtle and elusive but beautiful.

    The next five days were spent in further analysis and the potentially risky dispatch of a transfer pod for in situ measurements. The crew of the transfer pod reported color and temperature changes on a scale too small for the ship's sensors to register. A small vial of the water, along with samples of dirt and rock, was brought back by the crew and subjected to three more days of careful testing. Over that time the water sample had become infused with nearly invisible strands of colored material. They were not bacterial or viral. The strands were, if anything, molecular and seemed to be in complete symbiosis with the water's microscopic plants and animals.

    The Worlds' Council decided that the release of the finding to the news feed would be postponed until further tests could be conducted on the planet's surface. A place was chosen—a peninsula that protruded a few hundred miles into the ocean—and more consultation took place.

    Should a long-term settlement be established on the peninsula?

    Who should populate such a settlement?

    More tests were conducted...

    The consensus was that they had discovered a completely new life-form. It did survive when drops were applied to the dirt and rock samples but its strands lost their individual colors and became incorporated into the substance of rock or dirt. One additional difference in the land-based variety—it didn't take part in the water-born variety's interaction with the planet's plasma currents, at least not in any way that could be detected.

    The Worlds' Council gave approval for a ten-member team to descend to the planet and set up a base. Delva demanded two seats in the transfer pod.

~~~

Morna was singing a song she'd heard the Aklans singing. The melody was lively and begged one's body to dance. Morna had no body but Delva and Verluin were dancing for her. Morna began to notice a peculiar correlation. They'd been at the base for ten days and the last five had seen the Mother planet, Beli-Pallos, align with the home star, Angi. Delva and Verluin had danced to Morna's singing on each of the ten days but, during the last five, Delva's personal plasma pattern had been changing in sync with the star/planet alignments. She abruptly stopped singing and reported: "Delva, you think you're only dancing with Verluin but my analysis shows that your body's plasma is dancing with Angi and Beli-Pallos."

    Delva clung to Verluin and stared at the sky. Then, she released Verluin and walked to the edge of the shore. She said: "Morna run an analysis of—"

    "I have, Delva, the water-born life form is also dancing in sync with the star and gas giant."

    Delva crouched at the water's edge and scooped some up to her mouth. As she swallowed, she looked back at Verluin and said: "It looks just like I'm under water."

    Morna said: "Confirmed. The life form is consciously aware. But, I marvel at your extremely unscientific behavior."

    Verluin approached his wife as he said: "Morna, it appears that even non-believers can have faith."

8 ~ Perfection

Chirzt and Laiy were sitting in one of the new, open-air eateries that were springing up on both Worlds. Chirzt had ordered a bowl of soup and Laiy was getting just a drink. As the server left the table, Chirzt laid a packet of papers down and said:

    "Here are the names and locations. Look at it later."

    "Right. What have you heard from the others?'

    "Rapiul and Gecul are working to locate more sympathizers on Anla and Jerul is working with me here. I told them to make sure the leader types were promised power and the rank and file folks got money. I think we need to be careful to profile them into two main groups, Independents and Dissatisfieds. I'll organize the Independents, you take the Dissatisfieds, right?"

    "Sure. What about a name?"

    "No. We need dedicated people or those we can make dedicated but we don't need any of the normal group identifiers. We have to stay flexible and respond to change. Names just lock people into assumptions."

    "Right. Think we'll eventually establish ourselves on that new World?"

    "Absolutely. It will take time but they seem to be moving pretty fast to clear it for mass settlement."

    "I think they should wipe out that new life form."

    "Really? What if it's on our side?"

    Laiy remained quiet as the server placed they orders on the table. After he'd left he said:

    "I heard it can take over a person's mind."

    "It's all rumor until more people get exposed to it. Time will tell..."

    "So, what about the new Aklan Council of Justice?"

    "Don't think they'll be a problem. It's only for Aklans."

    "But, it seems pretty obvious the structure of the Worlds' government was taken from Aklan beliefs."

    "Yes, and more and more Aklans are weaseling their way into consultation positions but most people don't want a religion ruling the Worlds."

    "They're not weaseling, they're being invited. Plus, the consultation they're offering isn't actually political; but, one thing we really need is someone on the Worlds' Council."

    "I think we should shoot for something even better. Delva's going to announce that she's staying on Angla and turning her duties over to an elected board of mediators."

    "How do you know that?"

    "I have friends you don't know."

~~~

Morna was analyzing Delva's latest communication with the new entity. A thousand more scientists and techs had been dispatched to Angla-Palli and it appeared the life form had one mind distributed over the countless aggregations of molecular strands. It definitely used the planetary plasma to form connections between remote presences and it definitely wanted to communicate.

    Delva was the only person to have ingested a portion of the entity—now named Anglana—but others had experienced a form of communication from mere skin contact. The contact communication was limited to a person's urge to taste the entity. Instructions were firm—do not swallow it.

    Morna's analysis had reached a point where she could give Delva some feedback:

    "Strong probability that you are reaching Anglana with your movements."

    "I'd say it's a certainty, Morna. I do have part of Anglana in my body."

    "Yes, but we've yet to determine if a biological containment of some strands severs certain modes of communication. Your movements may be registering in Anglana's mind through the ambient plasma."

    "I'll leave those speculations to you, Morna. I just want to keep talking with Anglana."

    "Your internals tell me that your conversation is quite similar to your dream activity."

    "Yes, but I'm awake."

    "Yes..."

    Verluin appeared over the rise of the hill that sloped to the shore with the sea. He was running and shouting something. Morna turned her hearing up and said: "He's gotten word from the Council. You've been approved for permanent residency on this planet."

    Verluin closed the distance, grabbed Delva in his arms and said: "We've been approved for residency!"

    "Morna told me."

    "What a snoop she is!"

    Morna united with them in their laughter.

    Anglana increased the surge of wavelets at the shore and spoke through Delva:

    "Anglana is happy."

    Delva's lower, more liquid tone of voice prompted Verluin to ask: "Was that Anglana talking?"

    "Yes. She can apparently urge me to vocalize what she makes me feel. How marvelous!"

    Verluin felt an urge to approach the water. Delva sensed it and gave him a small nudge in that direction. Morna nearly screamed: "Stop!"

    Verluin crouched and scooped a bit of Anglana into his mouth and swallowed.

    He embraced Delva and said: "Faith, sweet Morna, faith."

~~~

After Verluin had united with Anglana, both of their interactions with the new life-form took on more of the nature of thought transference, though the strong emotional component wasn't lacking. Morna's analysis was constant. Reports to the Worlds' Council was constant. An official statement was being prepared for the Worlds' News Mesh.

    Emigration considerations were postponed until the carefully selected group of people chosen to ingest a portion of Anglana had had time to be studied.

    That is, until their remains could be studied.

    Every person of that group had fallen into a state of complete ecstasy and quickly died.

    Morna thought this was a breakthrough for her analysis.  She postulated that enhanced plasma communication ability was a key. She composed reports to the Worlds' Council, detailing the plasma communication abilities of Rednaxela, Velu, Xela, Zena, and Delva plus indications that none of the dead had the ability. She also included a method for determining potential focused plasma communication ability.

    Delva's immunity was a prime consideration for future selection methods. Morna couldn't account for Verluin's immunity.

    He'd told her it was Akla's Will. She set up a separate stream of analysis, incorporated her previous cogitations relating to possible correlations between religion and science, and set an alert if probabilities reached 85%.