Dwight V. Swain

“ Numbly, Dane tried to force his aching brain to function. If only he could find the concepts—!
He verbalized it, spoke aloud in hope that meaning would somehow come through: "Yes, yes. Man wants peace as you do. He'll go half-way and more—"
The arc of Kalquoi pulsed approval. All but one.
The others' glow slowly faded.
Instantly, like a bomb bursting, the lone dissenter flared emerald and purple, a radiance so brilliant that Dane reeled back, near-blinded.
His brain reeled, too. For such was the burst of energy the Kalquoi spewed into it that flame seemed to sear at every cell. ”

“ What have the Kalquoi got to do with this poor devil?"
"We picked him off an asteroid, didn't we?" the bullet-headed Pfaff slashed back belligerently. "If that doesn't tie him to the Kalquoi, what would it take? They've infiltrated the whole damn' belt, and you know it!"
"But just because he was marooned there—"
"Marooned, hell!" Pfaff hammered the butt of a rock-like fist against the doloid table. "Who marooned him, that's what I want to know! No man just pops up on an asteroid, naked as the day he was born, without even a breather mask for company!" ”

“ Dane felt Nelva's fingers stiffen on his cheek. A tremor ran through her.
Abruptly, his desire to leave the arena ebbed. He sat up. "What happens when you get no for an answer, Jessup?"
"Mister Jessup, you chitza!" Pfaff snarled. But the hairless man himself only smiled faintly.
"A wise man knows when not to talk, Dane," he observed. "For you, this is one of those times. You've done well. I like you. So human or not, I'll look after you so long as you behave."
"And Nelva?"
"She's no concern of yours, Dane. And as I said once, a wise man knows when not to talk." ”

“ Everywhere in the amphitheatre the aliens were shattering to atoms. In seconds, not one of them remained.
Convulsively, Dane twisted; managed to throw one anguished glance upward to the silver needle that was the Sandoz Shaft.
But so fast was the shaft vibrating that it now looked less like a needle than a flash of silver light.
Dane sagged back. Dully, he wondered how long it would take a man to die this way. Certainly there must be a limit to the amount of such maltreatment the human form could stand. ”

“ If all men want peace as you say, why have the others scorned us? Why are you the only one to open your brain to us?
Dane groped. "The others—? What others?"
But no coherent answer reached him; only a jumble of fragments and half-impressions. He sensed that the Kalquoi were arguing among themselves while he stood by, forgotten.
As if to prove him correct, his guards now goaded him back to his earlier post to the right of the Sandoz Shaft. Simultaneously, the other group of guards moved Nelva forward to the spot in front of the shining needle where Dane himself had stood. ”

“ Then sound came—the muffled clang of heavy hatch-lids. At once, the Kalquoi moved to the astrogation chamber's door and poised there, apparently waiting.
A moment later the door swung open. Two other aliens joined the first.
The three pulsed and glowed together briefly. Then one detached itself from its fellows and moved in close to Dane.
Immediately, he felt himself permeated by a strange, slightly prickling sensation, as if a slight electric current were being sent through him. Warmth enveloped him. The idea of sleep took on unique appeal. ”

“ Smiling, yet brisk and businesslike, Nelva crossed to him and extended a slim, firm hand. "Mr. Dane, I can't tell you how happy I am to see you. The Mars Record Center definitely considers itself fortunate to have the opportunity to study your case at first hand."
Wryly, Dane matched her smile. "I'm hardly uninterested myself."
"The sooner we get to it, the better, then. My carrier's waiting."
Nelva's smile was ever so bright. Yet looking from her to the bland-faced spaceship captain and sullen-eyed, hate-glowering Pfaff, Dane felt a sudden, swift wave of uneasiness. ”

“ Nelva sagged to her knees. Her cry was the keening of a soul in torment.
It was a trigger to turn a man to utter madness. Spasmodically, Dane started forward.
But there was no way to reach the girl, and in his heart he knew it. Too many Kalquoi, too many light-beams, stood ranged between him and her.
But the shining needle, the Sandoz Shaft—it was relatively unprotected for the moment—
Spinning, Dane dived towards it—low, beneath the level at which his captors hovered. ”

“ Nelva looked bewildered. "What computer? What are you talking about?"
"You know what I mean!" Dane bared his teeth. "Every planetary record center's built around one. It's the gadget that organizes your information, sorts out your data, makes your decisions when you've got too many complicating factors for a human mind to handle." He laughed harshly. "That's me, right now. I'm up against too many complicating factors. So I'm going to ask your computer for some answers."
Nelva stared at him incredulously. "Are you mad, Clark? At best, we've a few minutes' freedom for you. No more. ”

“ And all the time, the turmoil in Dane's brain continued ... a chaotic, inarticulate fumbling, based on some point of confusion between the two names, John and Clark.
But despite the pain, Dane hardly noticed the groping and the searching. He had mind only for the colored light and changing shape of the weird crystal that hovered before him.
For there was only one thing it could be: a Kalquoi, one of those dreaded alien invaders who'd long since usurped the outer planets, beyond the asteroid belt. ”

“ While he watched, a small group of them moved out into the arena and took places in a semicircle close before him.
Dane's guards fell back before the newcomers. In the seating area up along the amphitheatre's sloping sides, the assembled crystalline, light-emitting aliens eddied closer, glowed brighter. A hush seemed to fall over the hollow. Tension climbed like a spaceship at escape velocity.
Dane stood very still. There was nothing he could do but wait.
Then, suddenly, one of the Kalquoi in the tight arc close before him pulsed vivid scarlet. A familiar impulse leaped into Dane's brain ... ”

“ Her words came in a rush: "Clark, you don't understand! Security keeps guards on all computers—a special unit of Thorburg Jessup's private zombies. They'd capture you or kill you before you even got close to the question boards—"
"That would make a difference to you?"
"Can I say it any plainer?" The girl's lips trembled. She caught Dane's hand between hers. "I won't let them get you, Clark! I won't! That's why I'm telling you these things; why I've tried to help you. We'll find some place to hide you, somehow, where even Security can't find you—"
"Sorry, Nelva." Dane shook his head. ”

“ So far as he knew, the aliens themselves had no necessity for breathing, so the odds were against there being any air supply adequate to enable a human to survive.
But instead of moving him to the globe, the alien took him to the carrier in which he'd escaped from Mars; loaded him into it.
A moment later the second Kalquoi appeared, Nelva in tow. In seconds, she was installed in the carrier alongside Dane. Then, as if by magic, the hatch swung shut, and they were left alone. ”

“ Mumbling, Dane said, "Because ... we know ... too much?"
"That's right. But what about?"
"About the Kalquoi wanting peace? About the way you sent me to activate the shaft, so they'd think men were all against them?"
"Very good, Dane. Now tell me why."
"Because you ... run things ... so long as there's trouble ... with the Kalquoi. But if peace comes ... you'll be just another man."
"Correct." Jessup's hairless face set in a death's-head grin. "And now, to get on to the business at hand...."
He moved towards Nelva. Face chalky with fear, she stumbled backward, behind Dane, out of his view. ”

“ Her hair was tangled, her cheeks pale, her lips trembling.
And yet, for all of that, she was still the loveliest thing Clark Dane had ever seen. The yearning for her gnawed at him like a physical hunger.
Now the interplay of form and color from the line of Kalquoi indicated they were probing her mind. Dane could see her straighten, just a little ... breathe a fraction faster. Her hands moved, rubbing at the side-melds of her garment as if to scrub sweat from her palms.
More shapes, more colors from the Kalquoi. More signs of tension from Nelva Guthrie. ”

“ For abruptly, without warning, the same Kalquoi who minutes before had sent the searing charge through Dane's dazed brain blazed again—a great flash, orange and white and turquoise. The thought smashed in, so violent that even at this distance—even though it was directed at Nelva—the impact made Dane's head reel: She-creature, you close your brain to us! You hold back like the others! ”

“ The analysis gave me all the things in your mind—about the man with the hairless skull who was your master, and the silver needle, and the Kalquoi. When I mentioned robots, it was almost certain to make you think about—the man."
"Oh."
"You don't need to worry, either. You're not a robot. Robots don't have feelings. Besides, the celloscope would have shown it if you were. As for the rest—the shaft—the Kalquoi—I imagine they're some sort of delusion. Tied in with your amnesia, perhaps—specialized situations the standard tests weren't geared to touch."
"I see." Dane studied his knuckles. ”

“ He straightened; made a show of smoothing his rumpled short-sleeved, civilian tunic.
"For my money," he announced in a suddenly bland and unctuous voice "we've got no evidence whatever that this starbo"—a gesture to Dane—"is even human!"
In spite of himself, Dane went rigid. The officers' heads snapped round as if on springs. "What—?"
"You heard me." Pfaff was almost purring now. "The Kalquoi are shape-shifters; you know that. That's what makes them so dangerous. One minute, they'll be obviously alien—crystals floating in mid-air and radiating colored light like so many prisms. ”

“ I simply couldn't use a human. There was the matter of subconscious memory, inadverent knowledge. You have to consider those things when you're dealing with telepaths like the Kalquoi, you know."
Beside the Security chief, pig-eyed, smirking Pfaff moved smoothly into the conversation: "You didn't have much time, either, Mr. Jessup."
"A vital factor," the hairless man nodded. And then, to Dane again: "As you may have guessed, the Kalquoi already had perfected a shield against the brain-drain. It was urgent for us to strike a strong blow at them before they seized the initiative. ”

“ In his mind's eye, Dane saw how they replenished their life-force, transmuting into energy whatever convenient objects came to hand.
And because these aliens, these Kalquoi, themselves had no need for bodies or possessions, they'd been unable to conceive that other species might require such things ... might even be harmed if bodies and possessions were transmuted.
But now, at last, glimmerings of this truth had reached them. They'd begun to see the harm they'd done; were sorry for it.
Would man, in his turn, meet them half-way? ”

“ A uniformed tech held out a plastic cylinder. "Here's that cell-sheet, Miss Guthrie."
"Good!" There was an air of relief in the way Nelva said it. She turned to Dane; gestured triumphantly with the cylinder. "This is the answer to your problems, Clark! Your cellemental analysis sheet! Come on!"
Shrugging, Dane fell in beside her. He wondered wryly how he had so suddenly been promoted to first-name status.
Nelva was still talking: "A cell-sheet's proof positive of identity, Clark. By Federation law, one's made for every human at birth, everywhere among the inner planets. ”

“ Not even Security will back a man who's so eager for advancement as to endanger a vital project in the remote hope he can bully his way through to personal credit."
"But—Jessup—"
"Why would he call you, you mean?" Nelva Guthrie looked the image of wide-eyed innocence. "Why, to relieve you, of course, Mr. Pfaff. Orders are already cleared for your suspension as Security rep for an indefinite period. You unload as soon as the ship ramps down on Mars."
Finality on a level that forbade dispute or question was in the girl's voice and manner. She turned from Pfaff; faced Dane for the first time. ”

“ Dimly, as from afar, he was aware that the yat-stick package had slipped from his grasp and fallen to the floor, the truth as to its contents revealed as the plastic covering fell away. For his own part, a strange paralysis seemed to grip him. He stood upright, erect as before; yet it was beyond his power to move a single muscle. ”

“ Warily, Dane followed Nelva out ... moved after her through the shadows to the carrier station.
Still no guards, no interruption.
A carrier, poised in its launching-rack, sleek-lined and graceful.
"There it is," Nelva whispered, gesturing. "Just be careful. It can't carry you much beyond the gravitational pull. You may end up playing tag with Phobos and Deimos!"
Dane noted that she stood well back, deep in the cover of the platform-beams. ”

“ You don't understand." Nelva's hands moved in a gesture of frustration. "It's just not that easy to use an analytical computer."
Dane stopped his pacing. He frowned. "How's that?"
"For one thing, the machine's self-limiting. It covers only certain areas of information, likely to be needed here on Mars. But your questions aren't localized."
"Give me an example."
"The Kalquoi. They're a menace to all the inner planets, not just Mars. So when you ask about them, the only answer our machine will give you is a referral to the big System Computer on Luna." ”