Flight of the Maita Supercollection 3: Solving Galactic Problems Collector's Edition (151 page)

"You may ask
Nesk what they were like if you want to know. I will only say here
that the bandit described them well.

"That is the
story of the rise and fall of Royal City. I say it is to each of
you whether the city will arise again! Hisla and Narum are good
leaders and have learned more than any of us the lessons of this
fifteen years of nightmare. I will suggest they should now be given
the chance to do those things they always wanted to do.

"There is a
thing I don't think they have yet considered – well, two. Three,
actually.

"First, Royal
City is still very livable and, now that the demons are forever
gone, there are rich fields to grow more than sufficient food if
they are put to proper use. This city isn't so pretty in some ways
as it was, but is far more beautiful in others. It IS solid!

"Next, Dockside
Station is a province of Royal City and is far better situated for
a city. There is no need of rush as time is not so important now.
Royal City is still everything it ever was and more so all may live
fairly well while a city is built to a careful plan at Dockside.
The move can be slow and sure.

"Last, and the
part that no one has noted, is that Royal City is a very wealthy
city, regardless of what has happened to this point. You have all
you need for a great trade: You see, all that gold is still here!
The LOOK of the city was but illusion, but it was built right where
it stands. Lape and Kemat brought gold here from outside and it is
real! In addition, the demons removed the impurities and it is now
much finer than the standard of exchange over all of Savaraj!

"That, however,
is a decision you must each make for yourself. I am not of Royal
City and already the old wanderlust overtakes me again. It is my
fate to never rest, never know roots. I stay when there is a lesson
to learn and go when I learn it.

"I was to tell
of the rise and fall of Royal City. Its rebirth is another story,
not yet told. If it is told or if it is not is not of my concern.
That I leave to the people and to their good king and queen.

"And to the
future. Make of it what you will. If you are good, good will come
of it. You and only you can make good come of the evil that was
here!"

The rest of the
day was spent with Narum and Hisla. Thing "discovered" a tunnel
under the rubble of the palace that led right to the gold – and
there was a substantial supply of that metal (Augmented greatly by
Maita and the other ships).

For the next
few days Z told stories of cities he had seen and how some of them
were well-planned and were true examples of plenty and efficiency.
He told of a city he saw in his dreams that was really a model of a
Zulian city. The streets were wide and all had parks down the
center. Parks were a good idea because they could have tunnels
under them to drain the cities while above there was the place for
children to play and for adults to relax.

The dream city
was laid out in a semicircular pattern with roadways radiating out
like the spokes of a carriage wheel. All the houses and buildings
had numbers corresponding to the wide central entrance boulevard
that led to the modest palace in the central circle, which was
beside the river. The palace was surrounded by a wide park that was
open to the public and the first row of buildings on the fronting
street were the government offices and some businesses.

Then he told of
how the people of a town called Model he had visited somewhere made
a large place on the river that was drawn off. The water was
filtered through a tunnel filled with sand and gravel for several
meters, then run through charcoal. It was the best water he had
ever tasted!

He told of
several other things he had "seen" that the crew felt wouldn't be
pulling the Saj along too fast.

"Another thing
I like for a city is something the demons did that was good," Z
said. "It is true even the worst storm clears the air and waters
the crops: The idea of the police. In a city with so many people
there has to be some way to keep order. I think the police should
be there to enforce the special laws of the city, though, and not
to oppress citizens.

"Seemum was
good at the job. His whole force was. Maybe make laws to stop the
shopkeepers from stealing from their customers and let the police
handle it. Maybe let them handle any thief of any kind. They can be
made answerable only to you and you can make strong rules about it
even a king can't overturn. Make very harsh penalties if a police
officer breaks the laws. They are empowered to enforce the laws so
they should have an added penalty should they break them
themselves. Fair is fair!

"Of course,
they will have to be paid well for their services.

"There are so
many things I have seen. A little that is good here and a little
that is good there. Keep the good and throw away the bad.

"I am an
idealist, I guess, but I see great things for Royal City. The
dreams brought forth by those demons can be realized through the
efforts of the people themselves and they don't have to give up
anything for it, really. It is all for their own good and for their
children's good.

"I will return
again someday to see how things are progressing here, but I really
must go. Lape and Kemat are sailing soon and I have agreed to
travel with them."

"Yes," Kit
replied. "As one who knows the value of trade I would suggest the
artists, for that is truly what they are, who produce the
tapestries and rugs in this city consolidate and form what is
called a cooperative. I will most definitely be interested in
coming here on a regular schedule to purchase those items to vend
in other places and will promise to pay the best prices. Those
items are among the best art I've ever seen and should be seen in
other places! It is something all Savaraj may display with pride.
Anywhere! At anytime!"

"I don't
suppose you would consider leaving little Zonn with us?" Hisla
asked, knowing the answer. "I've become so used to it I hardly know
when it's hanging on me sometimes! It's so relaxing to have its
affections. I think it really helped me through this horror!"

"That's for
Zonn to decide," Kit answered. "We'll prepare to leave early in the
morning and it can make the choice then. It's actually very
intelligent and it really does understand. I'm sure of it. If it
wishes to stay here it will be of its own free will. None of us
feel that Zonn is property that may be kept or disposed of. It's
our friend and companion."

"It has the
wanderlust all of you have," Narum said. "It has examined every
little piece of this big city and is ready to move on. I often saw
it – before the demise of the scientists – poking around the
palace. I don't think there was a stone it didn't know intimately.
It could move among what we thought were delicate pieces of art. I
never saw it break anything!

"Perhaps it was
confused as to why we would consider a large pile of sandstone a
palace. I think you were right when you said the illusion didn't
work with little Zonn!"

"Sandstone or
marble is all the same to Zonn," Z agreed. "The sandstone is easier
to climb around on because it isn't so smooth it ... say! That
alone should have told us things weren't as we were seeing them! It
would climb right up what we thought was a polished wall of
marble!"

"We have a very
bad case of the 'I should have seens'," Hisla chided. "It is sad
that it took so long.

"What should we
do about medical attentions to my people?"

"That is
something I've seen both here and in other places," Z answered.
"It's something the demons did, however much we forced them to do
it, that was good.

"Remember when
they made the medicine for the scabby rots? They kept saying it was
spread by touching?

"Well! Suppose
there's a fluid or maybe a little piece of the disease that is too
small to see, but that can grow. Like the greengoo in water. You
know how you can take a tiniest drop of water from a pond with the
greengoo, look at it as closely as you can and can't see anything
but purest water, yet that one tiny clean drop has SOMETHING in it
because if you put it into a large and clean pond you will have a
pond full of greengoo in a day!

"What if there
is something like that in the scabby rots and other sicknesses?
Something that makes it spread through touch? If not, how does it
spread?

"The demons
knew about sickness. They spread it themselves, but then they say
not to touch when they want it to stop so it doesn't spread
anymore. There MUST be something too small to see that spreads it.
My idea is if that is true there should be something like the salve
they made that a medical person can rub on his hands every time she
examines anyone. That way they will know THEY aren't the ones
spreading anything!

"If it does no
good, what is hurt? If it's true it will help. To do it will maybe
do good and CAN'T harm anything!"

"I know!" Kit
cried excitedly. "You know how the elementals used the distilled
alcohol to wash the skin of people with scabby rot and other things
on their skin? Maybe the alcohol would stop the greengoo, too. It
would be easy to see. Put a cup of water with lots of greengoo in
it in a little alcohol, then see if it stops the greengoo from
spreading if you put some of it in other water. If it stops the
greengoo it'll stop the scabby rots and many other things. Make a
law that there must be a bowl of alcohol in every place where
approved medical help is to be found and a LAW that hands must be
washed in it before any examination! If some of these things stop
spreading when such measures are undertaken we'll know it works. If
nothing changes the law can be dropped and no one's hurt."

"No," Narum
argued. "We know greengoo is a plant because it forms long strings
when it gets old and alcohol doesn't harm plants. Perhaps there is
something different when animals are involved because alcohol will
kill many animals. Enough at one time will kill even US! If it
kills animal things that are too small to see it would suffice to
stop those things.

"I am not
saying it well. Do you understand?"

"You are saying
that things that stop diseases in plants are not the same as the
things that stop diseases in animals and that we are animals," Kit
agreed. "I think that is true. We use the copper solution formed
when acids are added to it to stop the moldy rots in vegetables and
it doesn't kill plants unless a lot is used, but a little will kill
animals. Alcohol is like that in reverse – and I didn't say it any
better than you did, but we all know WHAT we are saying."

They used that
technique to make various further suggestions, presenting them as
logically as they could and in terms the Saj would understand. They
knew Hisla and Narum would try any of them from the respect they
had earned already.

When they left
in the morning Thing went to wrap its tentacles around Hisla and
Narum and to squeeze a bit, then went to Z's shoulder. It had made
its choice.

The crew took
the cart Larj always pulled around, packed it with the many
mementos they were given and set off for Dockside Station, then
sailed away in their boat and to the spaceships where they were
picked up and were soon in orbit.

"It's great to
be going home!" Z said.

*We're not. You
forget that we still have to find if there's another colony like
this one – and we damned well know there's at least one! Get into
the medical boxes and I'll turn you back into you.*

That's the way
it goes. Z's orchids would just have to wait.

Finding the
Camp

"How do we
handle this?" Z asked as they headed for Grlaq. "Make a Jornian out
of me?"

*You and Thing
remain in your natural forms and Kit and Tab go in guises they used
before. TR and T Six still have their disguises in place so that
won't be a problem. Kit's known here as Marq and Tab's called Ford.
I'll show you pictures to let you know when they're the ones you're
talking to. I'll speak with Sarnof on fastcom after I identify
myself as emperor. Maybe he'll give me some clues, but this is one
you'll have to play by ear. TR, T Six and myself will be using
everything at our disposal to trace where any such colony may be. I
don't know what to tell you. You're pretty good at thinking up
things. Just make some kind of plan and follow it. Be sure the
others always know the kind of thing you have in mind so you don't
negate each other's efforts. I'll use empire machines to trace
supplies or some such thing. T Six and TR can choose an agenda for
themselves. Let's get this done!*

[ Everyone
knows you as the emperor's ship so Z and I will naturally be empire
representatives. Our names are well enough known. Maybe our
presence with you will make someone nervous enough to slip up.
]

"Keep a close
watch on where any fastcom messages go when we show up," Z
suggested. "I have an idea or two Tab or Kit could probably handle
easier than I can, but that's how it goes.

"Tab said these
people keep handwritten records, probably in special codes, so it's
too bad Thing can't be some exotic pet or something. It could get
away with looking things over, that way."

*Thing will
certainly be recognized here so none of that matters. We're in
orbit. Here come T Six and TR now. I think we can do our own
individual snooping for awhile, then we can meet to pool what we
find and can make a plan. Use your own ideas. All of you. I can't
stress enough that individual initiatives and new ideas are
needed.*

[ You sure
sound pompous! Don't lose sight of the fact it'll be all Jornians
doing it if there's anything being done. If we uncover something
else we'll report it and come back to it after we find what we want
to know about what we want to know it about – or something. ]