Flight of the Maita Supercollection 3: Solving Galactic Problems Collector's Edition (197 page)

Another
important thing he found was the things were easy to spot at night
with low infra-red vision because they produced a bit of "body
heat" from the protein and RNA structures in their "bodies." He was
able to ensure there weren't anymore of them growing between Milk
Lake and Lope's farm on Flint Creek. He almost decided he would
teach some of the people how they could get rid of them in the
morning, then reconsidered. The repulsion of the psy power would
keep the people from doing anything at all. It was going to be hell
if he and Kit had to do this entirely by themselves.

* *

Kit walked
along the smooth floor to the large iron doors. Givzoo stepped
ahead to open the doors. Volich was by his side with Zantoo and
Nortich close behind. Kit didn't know what to expect. That the
thing was a fungus didn't tell much as the plants took so many
forms.

It was actually
beautiful in its own way, like five large feather-fans in a circle
standing perhaps four to five meters in height, the base of the
circle three meters across and the top five and a half meters
across. It was a silvery grey with golden veins in intricate
patterns across the width of the fans. Kit felt himself to be under
close scrutiny, though not of a visual type. He allowed the psy
part of his mind to be probed while not letting any hint of the
main part be detected. He was studying the exterior of the large
bract fungus while it studied the interior of his mind. It was a
strange sensation.

There was
suddenly a whispery voice coming from the psy mind.

"What are
you?"

Not knowing how
to speak to the thing Kit looked to Givzoo, who said to vocalize
and it would be able to understand him.

"I am a Bentan
citizen of the Maitan Empire, male, less than middle aged," Kit
replied.

"You are not
... decipherable," the fungus said. "There is something not right
about you. Picture your personal designation so I may isolate
further communications with you when such is desirable for any
reason."

"Just state
your name while thinking strongly of the words, Clohk," Nortich
said.

"I am called
Clohk Nate here," Kit said. "And your designation?"

"It doesn't
matter," the fungus replied. "There is but one of me. I will not
exist when there are others of my species, though I will be all of
them here. Call me 'You'.

"Clohk Nate is
... a lie, but is the truth? So much of what you various species
represent is in that particular mode. These others cannot explain
that to me. Perhaps you can."

"Clohk Nate is
what I am called here, that is true," Kit replied. "I am called by
other names in other places. There are reasons one may wish to not
be connected to another place or time so a different name is used.
It is true here, but it is a lie on certain other worlds."

"So it is a lie
that is true. I understand much now," You mused. "This one called
Givzoo explained how you have earlier discussed ways to destroy my
species and myself in particular. He stated that you have discussed
poisons and bacteriological agents. I perceived that as truth and
lie. Can you explain the mixed reaction I had?"

"We discussed
radioactives under the general heading of poisons," Kit answered.
"Perhaps it is only because he considers radioactive materials to
be more than a normal poison. You are picking at the imprecise
meanings of words. That is a waste of time because one word may
have several meanings, thus the mind, when selecting the word will
unconsciously note the variations. We are not adept at psy
communications, thus we use words. One word may have many meanings,
some of which we are not quite certain of even as we use those
words. It is possible that what you feel to be a truth and lie
mixed is only our normal reaction to use of imprecise words."

"I will accept
that for the moment," You replied after a long moment's
consideration. "Even underlying such a seemingly straightforward
explanation I perceive not truth along with truth. I have fully
considered and feel it is safe to accept that explanation.

"Why do you
wish to destroy me?"

"Don't you wish
to destroy us?" Kit retaliated.

"No. I merely
wish that you do not unduly inconvenience me," You answered. "I
find you to be sometimes useful. I am not mobile. That is an
inconvenience I must accept as my nature. I can use your species to
overcome the drawbacks of my own inability to travel."

"Perhaps we do
not wish to be used by you or anyone else," Kit shot back. "We
believe in free will. We help those we wish to help. We do not help
those we chose not to help."

"Such a concept
is not efficient," You replied. "I do not understand why you would
wish to NOT serve me."

"We are mobile,
thus we see things from a different perspective," Kit said. "It is
one of the things you could not be expected to understand about us.
Free will means nothing to you because there is nothing you could
do with it. On the other hand, it is very important to us. We must
be able to choose where we go and what we do. You aren't going
anywhere or doing anything so it isn't pertinent to you."

"I comprehend
much of what you mean by your muddled expressions," You replied. "A
point well taken by both of us I believe would be to note that you
used an expression about hands which I have none of yet which I can
decipher as meaning to view things from another perspective. You
will note that I use terms such as 'to view' when they have no
meaning to me in any direct sense. I am able to compose a sense of
things now because of your use of those terms. I comprehend why you
appear to be lying when you are not. I comprehend why your words
are imprecise. It is not the words, it is in the way you use them.
If you thought logically that would not be a problem. You think in
inefficient ways. I will change that."

"No, you
won't!" Kit snapped. "That kind of a statement is perceived as
arrogance by us. We have evolved to our manner of thinking as you
have evolved to yours. To take such a stance as you have shows me
you have far too high an estimation of your own peculiar abilities.
Perhaps we would not be looking for ways to destroy you if you
would consider that we DO think in different ways and we are
comfortable with our methods as you obviously are with your
own."

There was a
sudden stab of what would have been pain in the psy part of Kit's
mind at that.

"I will
tolerate no such resistance!" You said. "See that you control such
thoughts or you will regret your actions!"

"But you
weren't successful in causing me pain," Kit pointed out. "That was
a mistake you shouldn't have made. You seem to think that because
you can cause pain in the Grandish or in the Klaft you can also do
so with a Bentan! Does it occur to you that I haven't any idea what
it is you find offensive?"

"You will
immediately desist in telling me how I may think!" You snapped,
sending another stab of what would be pain if Kit couldn't turn it
off.

"Let's see if
YOU feel pain!" Kit said, taking the heat laser from its holster
and putting a thin beam through a piece of the frond. He felt an
enormous surge of psy power thrown at him, but turned off the psy
part of his mind before it struck. He saw the Klaft drop to the
floor.

"So you DO feel
something akin to pain!" Kit cried. "If you again cause any pain to
any of us here I will slice you up! I mean that!"

"I have
sustained damage," You said matter-of-factly. "My defense was
automatic. It was not a deliberate attempt to harm these others who
were not involved, though I will definitely find a way to seriously
harm you. It is imperative I show you that damaging me will result
in harsh consequences to yourself."

"If you again
attack ANY of us I will do much more than a superficial bit of
damage to you," Kit threatened. "You must understand that what
happens to you is a direct result of what you do to us."

"I merely
protected myself with an instinctive reaction when you attacked
me," You argued.

"No!" Kit
snapped. "You attacked me. You tried to cause me intense pain. That
is an attack. I merely defended myself from your attack. There was
a chronological sequence here. YOU attacked ME."

"The pain does
you no permanent damage," You dismissed. "The weapon you used did
cause lasting damage. They are not the same thing."

"That's one
serious difference in our thought patterns," Kit replied. "We,
these people and myself, perceive pain as damage. Simply because it
causes no physical damage that is immediately evident does not mean
it does NO damage in other ways."

"I will think
on this," You replied. "Go to the second room from the front on the
eastern side of the corridor to await my decision as to what I wish
to do with you."

"I will go
where I wish when I wish to do what I wish!" Kit snapped. "Your
decision means little to me. I am mobile, you are not. That is the
whole of it. You have no power over me so your plan to take and to
hold this world will come to nothing. What I offer is cooperation
with a truly unique race by the Maitan Empire. There are a large
number of worlds where you can establish yourself without
interfering with other cultures and without anyone interfering with
yours."

"These have
reported that your empire has decreed that I never leave this
world," You said. "Therefore, as that was truth, what you say is a
lie."

"The empire has
decreed that you do not leave this world if it is to mean that you
interfere with others," Kit argued. "The choice is yours as to
whether you leave this world at all. You can sense I speak
truth."

"Yet there is
guard upon your words," You accused. "I cannot perceive truth or
untruth in a definitive sense. I do know that to have any number of
worlds without those to serve me and my species is totally
unacceptable to me. It would be an empty thing from any point of
view. The fact that you are closed to me shows that there is
subterfuge in your words."

Kit was finding
he had a small sense of what You was planning. He knew this was
going to be another attack of some kind, that You didn't understand
what he was saying. He opened the psy part of his mind, but held
the automatic shutdown ready.

It was a good
thing he did. He was struck by an intense bolt of psy power, shut
the psy part of his mind off and stared at You a moment. He took
the laser out of the holster again and deliberately fired at the
base of one of the fans. There was a bluish glow where the beam
hit, but nothing more.

"It would seem
we can defense one another quite well," You said. "My power has no
effect on you while your own weapon is useless against me. This
will be an interesting competition. You must now destroy me or I
must destroy you. There can be no other outcome. I believe I have
the better part of this in ways of which you have no
conception.

"Get out of
this room and take these with you or I will attack THEM! I perceive
that you will find such action intolerable. That is one of your
weaknesses I will exploit to my advantage. I have no others to
consider in each of my actions."

Kit helped
Nortich up to her feet while Volich and Zantoo helped Givzoo to
stand. They went shakily out of the room and to the outer door
which would not open as You had placed the padlock on the outside.
Kit used the laser to melt the lock off of the hasp and to remove
the ring holder so no other lock could be placed there.

"It would seem
I can protect myself from your weapon, but I can't protect
inanimate objects at much distance," came into Kit's mind.

"Which is an
advantage that has shown me a way to attack you!" Kit replied. "It
would seem YOU have weaknesses that I can exploit!"

Kit led the
others out to the skimmer craft and headed for A Port. There was a
tugging at the psy part of his mind to return and the Klaft
implored him to go back, but he ignored them. He put the craft as
close to T6 as he could, disabled it to where it couldn't be taken
off, then used his robotic strength to force the Klaft aboard T6.
Once they were inside and shielded Givzoo said he was glad. They
had no choice but to resist Kit's attempts to take them out of
You's sphere of influence.

"I'm going to
instruct the ship to take you to another ship that's in orbit," Kit
said. "I'm an empire agent who was sent here because of the seeming
interference with the culture here on Grandish. Klist Mar is the
emperor's famous detective, Tabori R. DeSixtee, in disguise. The
ship you'll soon be placed on is Tab's famous intelligent ship, TRD
Sixty. You'll be transferred to a Fleet ship that'll take you to
Hospital or University where you can complete your research in
safety. As you see, we can shield the psy power. Maita will order
that you have the shields implanted so you'll be personally safe if
you're ever in contact with that thing again."

"But how can we
then communicate with the plants?" Nortich asked. "We have to know
what they're thinking! Will Emperor Maita really give them a
world?"

"Yes," Kit
replied. "Perhaps several. You'll be able to do the research in
better circumstances. The shields will be made so you can turn them
on or off as I do mine. It'll have an automatic shut-down circuit
that'll activate if you enter a ship. Along with the antipsy
implantation will be an anti-posthypnotic suggestion device. That
will ensure the thing's never taken from its designated closed
planets."

They all agreed
on that. T6 rendezvoused with TR, who took the group out to a Fleet
ship after going through rigorous decontamination. It was going to
be certain there were no spores being carried out. Kit headed back
to Grandish and to Koosd to meet with Tab.