Flight of the Maita Supercollection 3: Solving Galactic Problems Collector's Edition (192 page)

"What were the
lines of their research?" Kit asked.

"Sonic and
other specific repulsion methods as well as genetically modified
predators. The grain crop was saved by using a modified fungus to
attack the insects that had become resistant to most insecticides.
The only ones that would work anymore would also kill all the
pollinators. It looked hopeless until the fungus was developed. It
was so well-designed it would attack ONLY the three types of
insects devastating the crops," T6 reported. "They're good! They
are more than good!"

"Then what are
they doing on this restricted world doing illegal research?" Kit
asked. "There's still something here we haven't brought out in any
way."

"Yo! It would
seem most likely that whatever it is started on Tesfort," T6
replied.

"Then we'll
have our little dinner, see what they have in mind and head for
Tesfort," Kit said.

When Kit met
Nortich at the restaurant she had two other Klaft with her, a
female named Volich and a male called Zantoo. She said they were
technicians at the research facility. There had been a bit of an
accident there that brought a temporary pause to their work.

"We're working
in a rather isolated part of the world here," Nortich explained.
"There was a bit of a quake. We use a tremendous amount of
glassware in the project, a good bit of which was broken. The
replacement glass won't be ready for several days."

"I would think
you could get any kind of glassware you might need within hours,"
Kit said. "I could run to Eachera or Zeezia and be back with
supplies for you in far less than a day!"

"We wish to use
locally produced equipment whenever possible," Zantoo protested.
"We are on these peoples' world. It is only fair they share in all
parts of the project."

"Yes. The
research will definitely be to their advantage," Volich continued
smoothly – much too smoothly. This was rehearsed. "We are
interested, of course, in a purely scientific way. We are learning
from these projects – learning things of benefit to thousands of
worlds and billions of people. We don't wish to overly rush any of
it so it is only a slight inconvenience that we have to live at the
pace the native population sets for us. It would be different if
there were a critical problem here, but this is only research. We
can use the time to bring our records up to date. We tend to get a
bit too lax about that, though everything is on the day schedules.
It has to be put in the comp is all."

Nortich was
watching him closely to see how he was taking all this so he
decided to show himself to be not so naive as all this.

"This is a
culture-restricted world," he replied dryly, "so there's no legal
research in any isolated area. You're not even permitted to BE in
any isolated areas. I don't care what you're doing or why, but
let's not play games with one another, okay? You're using locally
produced equipment simply to avoid any questions from the traders
guild, then from the empire.

"I can get the
stuff to you here without any danger of your being found out. It's
one of the things I do. That's why my ship is the best investment I
ever made. It's also why I can't report being taken for what cash I
had in another place. I learned from that mess so it won't happen
again."

The three Klaft
were nervous, giving one another strange looks.

"There's a
great deal you don't know," Nortich said. "We'll continue trading
only with the locals for a variety of reasons. What we wanted from
you is something that will have to wait. Believe it or not, we'd
hoped you were a bit more honest than you've shown yourself to
be."

It was Kit's
turn to be surprised. What the hell was going on here?

Nothing else
happened that evening of any note. In the morning Kit spent time at
the records hall, then was able to get another short run – which he
didn't want, but which he couldn't very well refuse if he was to
stay in character. On his return the following day he met Givzoo
and Zantoo at the pub where he played some Stars and Comets, losing
a couple thousand credits. They became even closer while Kit became
more confused.

The two Klaft
seemed to be quite honestly concerned about other peoples. The two
women never did or said anything that would indicate they were any
different on that score. Givzoo told him about the breakage at
their labs and said they had already arranged for new equipment and
materials to be delivered. Kit was with Givzoo at the pub the
following afternoon when a message came from the Klaft ship that
the glassware would be waiting for him at the south gate. Givzoo
seemed startled at the news. Kit went with him to accept
delivery.

*

Tab unloaded
the glassware from the boat to the dock, then put it on a cart to
take to the spaceport gate for Givzoo to pick up. TR suggested it
be handled that way instead of contacting the Klaft scientist with
the standard delivery message from the warehouse so there would be
a record of the transaction in the empire machines with which to
face him later if that became advisable. If he raised a stink about
it Tab could always be surprised – since there could be no possible
reason for these philanthropic scientists to wish any secrecy.

He sent word to
the Klaft ship the stuff was waiting, then joined a few of the
locals drinking a bottled beverage until Givzoo and a Bentan came
to the gate and out to take delivery of the goods. The Bentan was
Kit. That was good. It indicated Kit had gotten in close with the
group. Givzoo introduced him as Clohk Nate, a friend. He didn't say
anything about the glass being delivered there, but asked Tab to
take it to a warehouse near the outskirts of the town where a woman
named Volich would show him where to place the items. Givzoo paid
cash chits for the glassware. There was no opportunity for Tab and
Kit to make any real contact before Tab took the cart and headed
toward the warehouse. Volich was waiting to have him place the
cargo on a skimmer craft – a machine that wasn't allowed outside of
the spaceport area on a restricted planet. The woman seemed quite
pleasant. She even showed great concern when he twisted in an odd
manner as a crate slid from the cart striking him in the chest. He
didn't show any undue curiosity about anything, unloaded the wares
and went back to his hotel.

This was about
all they could do here. It was time to get back to the area of
Koosd – but he couldn't go there without Kit – but then, maybe that
would be the best idea. Some time would be spent with TR while he
waited to learn something to give them a direction. There might be
something they could plan, now.

Tab checked out
of the hotel, got into the boat and went along the coast until
there was no danger of his being seen by anyone. He hauled the boat
up above the highwater line, tethered it to a couple of stout
trees, then called TR to come after him. He was soon in orbit and
attached to the computers by direct link.

"What've you
discovered about these people?" was his first question.

"Very little,
really," TR responded. "They've done some very good work on several
worlds and have received high commendations from Maita for two
really outstanding projects. You know about the one. The other was
an infestation of a termite-like insect on Jovid four. The bug
could have destroyed all the structural woody plants as well as a
great percentage of the food crops. It would eat almost any organic
material, was resistant to all the known safe insecticides and
wouldn't respond for long to repulsor sonics.

"Givzoo and
friends came in at their own expense, developed a bacterial
predator against the termites, but said they would stay for a time
to observe the results. Givzoo claimed the way those organisms
became immune to things the control wouldn't last long.

"He was right.
It was only forty two days before they found immune termites and it
all started over again. Fortunately Givzoo – and Nortich, who
specializes more in fungal controls – had spent the interim time
studying the next form of attack. It was a fungoid that only
attacked those termites that were immune to the bacterial
infection. It was so nearly perfectly engineered biologically that
only those termites immune to the bacteria were attacked by the
fungus and vice versa. Within a year the termites were extinct.
Maita gave them a large empire grant and the highest commendation
the empire gives. That's why this seems so out of place. The Klaft
– and I've studied everything we have about them – are one of the
finer races in the empire. They simply don't do this sort of thing.
They're much like the Inktans psychologically. They tend to be very
good at research and teachers. They have a number of professors at
University, so that says a lot. They're more on the biological end
while Inktans are more known for social evolvement."

"From what
little I've seen of them I tend to agree," Tab said. "I don't begin
to understand any of this."

The fastcom
chattered, then came onto direct digital. It was the private
scrambled channel only the two ships and Maita could use.

*Tab, TR and T
Six. I am involved almost completely in this thing on Tlorg. This
is a secondary channel I have assigned to follow what you're doing,
but I wish to make a suggestion or two for your consideration. It
is shown that there's some psy force at work there. You have
built-in circuitry to make you immune from those effects. I propose
that TR and T6 modify Tab and Kit in the following manner (There
was a fastpulse input as Maita sent the diagrams). This
modification will allow a small section of your minds to be
influenced by that psy force, but will set the essential you and
the full control aside from those circuits. You may react as you
see fit. We don't know exactly what we're up against here and we
don't want our adversaries to know what they're up against, either.
I believe you get the idea. Do what you think is best. It isn't
necessary that you respond to this circuit. These are only
suggestions.*

"Well?" Tab
said. "Why haven't you made the changes? What do you think Maita
has in mind?"

"They're
basically to allow you to experience the effects of the psy much in
the manner you experience things I project onto your internal
screens," TR replied. "You can see what you're supposed to be
feeling and can fake it if you think it's advisable to do so. I
agree it can give some pretty good insight into what this is
about.

"Maita? If
you're not too busy now you've seen our conclusions about the
Klaft. This is something entirely out of character for those
people. Tab has come to the conclusion that some outside force is
at work. I think some experiment is out of control. Maybe they were
working on a repulsor field of some sort and found a way to put it
into a living organism, then found it was too strong to resist. It
now has other psy powers. It's now controlling the Klaft instead of
the other way around."

*Possible, but
most unlikely at this point. You don't know enough. It's possibly
an experiment out of control, but I don't detect any intelligent
direction from the data. I'm sure the Klaft would find a way to
destroy anything particularly dangerous they had any hand in
developing. Unfortunately, I don't see what else it could be,
either. We need more data. Don't go too far to accept an unproven
theory. It could prove disastrous.*

"So we know
there's something there and that's all," Tab complained. "I haven't
figured whether they're making experiments in cloning or in gene
splicing or what from the stuff they got through me. It could be
any number of things."

"We can leave
out legal things," TR replied. "Whatever it is they intend to hide
it. I wish we knew whether they think of whatever it is as a
profitable thing or something else."

"No....They
aren't so much a profit-seeking race," Tab answered. "Look at what
they've done on their own. Look at the grant Maita gave them."

"Look at how
they tried to use crooked games to get T Six," TR replied. "Look at
how they're hiding from the empire."

"Well, maybe
you'd better modify me and send me back to Koosd," Tab said. "I can
make up a story about Kit handling business somewhere else while I
poke around there. Keep a floater handy for me to use if I decide
to go to those labs. I can see what the psy force is really up to
if I allow it to know I'm, say, on the lake. I'll see whether it's
directed at a specific target or generally around. Maybe it's
general unless a target's spotted, then it gets aimed."

"Kit will
either finish what he's doing at A Port and come to Koosd or he'll
go to the labs with Givzoo," TR said. "It's gonna be a strange game
we're playing!"

Tab went into
the medbox where the new circuits were added, then took the floater
along the coast road outside of Koosd, managing to walk into town a
little before dusk. He went to Veen's where he booked a room,
explained that Jarj Fel would be along in a few days and fell into
the routine of telling jokes and traveler's stories. There was no
news about anything strange happening since the two left. Things
were going along normally. There was a girl, Kaer Peld, who very
openly offered to spend some extra time with Tab. It would be
considered odd if he were to refuse her under the circumstances. He
was built with ALL the abilities of the Grandish (Except to
actually father a child) so he agreed it would be most pleasing to
him to share the time with such an attractive and warm person.

As was his
nature he quickly developed a deep fondness for her. She also found
him to be an excellent partner. After two days around the town Tab
decided to go to Lope's farm and thence to Milk Lake to see what
was changed there, if anything. That was a natural thing for a
person of his nature, too, so didn't cause any comment
whatever.