Flight of the Maita Supercollection 3: Solving Galactic Problems Collector's Edition (65 page)

Would there
ever be?

Trouble there
was the ones being conned would be the first and loudest
complainers should the racketeers be stopped. They would cling to a
hope, even a false one, to the last erg of their strength. There
was no place to turn and no place to hide and Enn Far, Council
Chairman, must not lose hope. He MUST NOT!

* * * *

Hal Korr looked
through the electron microscope at the virus. It was in another
chamber behind a glass wall for safety so what he saw was a
projection by computer on a television screen. It wasn't growing
anymore, but they had found hundreds of substances that would stop
it on a culture plate. Most of them were worse on the Kroon body
than the virus itself – much faster and nastier, at least in the
short term.

He punched the
information into the computer and called up the next slide. This
one seemed to be growing faster and better so he put a special tag
on the data. Those were the things he was looking for. It was his
own idea. A difference, any difference, might be important.
Everyone was looking for something that would slow the virus so why
not look for something that would do the opposite? Maybe he could
learn something about it. He knew many weed killers worked by
simply giving the plants a growth hormone that made them grow so
fast they began leaving a thing out of the new cells here and
there. They outgrew their food supply and kept growing. The result
was inevitable. If something such could be found to affect the
virus may the results not be the same? If there's something the
virus needs – and there obviously is or it would attack other than
nerve cells – that it can be forced to outgrow the supply of but
will continue to grow, it will die. The thing would have to be
something the Kroon body could live without for a period. No sense
in having the virus absorb all of whatever it was and die if the
Kroon would die at the same time.

The next seven
slides were inconclusive, then there were two more that were dead
so he input the tag code on their data. He definitely wouldn't
overlook anything that killed the thing!

That was all
for today. Maybe he could check some of Mi's cultures for her. He
had become expert with the microscope and was meticulous. He had
learned that and the reasons for it from her.

He looked over
to her. She was laboring over the centrifuge extracting hundreds of
compounds, doing a gas chromatograph and spectroscopic examination
of each one. She would then check them again and again. If some
small thing were missed it could mean the serum they were searching
for was missed. There simply was no point at which they could say,
"We have a positive result and can direct the research." It was
still a matter of trial and error. There was no path and no
direction.

She gave the
computer orders to bring up a certain sequence of cultures and told
him to look for one side of the culture medium to have any
difference whatever in the virus growths. He was to tag those and
to code a recall for her to pull when she had the time. These were
the "split result" cultures with built-in double controls one of
the assistants had come up with.

Jak Tall
brought four boxes in that had been dropped from a helicopter – the
copters weren't allowed to land – and put them on the bench, then
left without saying anything. He said long ago he wouldn't do
anything to detract from their line of thought and that he was to
be ignored. Hal knew Mi appreciated that fact. She was of the
psychology that distractions left her confused as to what she was
doing for a moment and that may be the one moment when some
critical thing must not be lost, some intangible little hint or
idea that would eventually lead to success here. That was why he
always waited for her to look to him with anything. She treated him
in much the same way, though he had photographic recall and that
kind of danger wasn't likely with him. He could review things later
in his own mind without any confusion whatever.

He found nine
out of the forty eight slides with what she was looking for, but
waited until she came to him to say so. She then called those
slides up and studied them carefully.

"I'm using mild
radiation to mutate the virus," she explained. "Perhaps we can make
a weak strain that will cause antibodies to form that will prevent
infection from the mutated plague like a vaccination. Anything
that'll do the job will be used. We need new ideas and new lines of
research."

"Doesn't the
body form antibodies from the real thing? I thought they were what
told us who had the infection."

"Yes, but the
trouble is the body forms antibodies after the infection is
contracted and has begun its spread internally. If we can make the
body produce the antibodies with an inoculation they'll already be
there whenever the body's exposed and prevent its attacking the
cells. It's the difference in catching an arsonist as he breaks in
to start a fire or in finding him after the building has burned
flat to the ground. We're, in a sense, trying to find a way to have
the police inside the building laying in wait before the arsonist
gets in."

"Didn't I read
somewhere that the, uh, 'case' the virus comes in can be used to
stimulate antibody production?"

"Not on this
one. You can't wrap a package in air!"

"I love your
allegories. I always know exactly what you mean."

She grinned at
him tiredly and returned to her centrifuge after she programmed in
another sequence. The com buzzed and she picked it up. Had she been
doing anything she wouldn't have answered it because she wouldn't
have heard it. She could turn it off in her mind. It was a talent
that kept her concentration at critical times. She talked for a
moment, then handed the set to him. It was Enn Far coming out of
the services for some councilwoman who had died of the plague. They
talked for a long moment then hung up. Hal went back to the
microscope sequence.

They didn't
work specific hours on the island so they soon both finished what
they were doing. Hal was surprised to note he had been working for
nine and a quarter hours without a break. In ways it seemed much
less while in others much more. He was tired, as Mi obviously was,
and hungry so they went to the kitchen to fix a meal. Mi complained
she smelled ozone so she called maintenance to fix it. Jak Tall
kept the place so well there was never any major problem – so far.
The last thing they needed was for the kitchen to burn down!

They strolled
out into the night to sit awhile in silence looking over the calm
sea in the starlight. Kroon had no large moons to reflect into the
night, but it was in a close group of many stars so silhouettes and
shadows were made out and sparkles of light glinted and danced on
the waves. Mi leaned against him, somewhat to his surprise. He was
much attracted to her, but she was tied too deeply in her work to
even notice him – or so he thought.

"Hal, I'm a
normal woman with normal needs," she stated without preamble. "I've
seen you watching me at times, but you're too much the academic
moralist to come to me so I'll come to you.

"My work here
is of ultimate importance. I know that.

"I can't work
constantly. I must also eat and sleep, breathe, drink and excrete.
I must also have emotional support, which you give me. I need to
feel the security of having someone with me. Close to me. I'm tired
of sleeping alone."

Hal, while not
having the breadth of experience many had in intimate matters,
still wasn't without any such experience at all and he most
certainly wanted Mi. He realized he had wanted her for some time
now. From that night in the restaurant, millennia ago. That
realization surprised him somewhat.

He leaned his
head atop hers and said, "I was waiting for the right time. I know
the work's the important thing, but I'm also normal and I also have
my needs, among them an emotional one. I was attracted to you from
that first night in the restaurant. We can't spend all our time in
the work or we won't be in a condition to recognize progress if we
make any. I'll also admit my desires and needs are directed only at
you. I care very deeply about you."

Mi placed her
arm around him and drew closer. They didn't say anything more and
soon went to his rooms.

* * *

Sop Lett reread
the passage for the hundredth time. It still wasn't right!

He sighed and
began again: "We, citizens of Kroon, in order to establish.... What
the hell is all this crap? I've said that same thing fifty times
and fifty times it hasn't worked! Damn it, I've got to get out of
this rut!

"In order to
establish a fair and decent government....

"In order to
establish an orderly government....

"In order to
form a.... That's it! In order to form a fair and responsive
government.... Yes!

"In order to
form a ... fair ... responsive and ... representative government,
we, the people of Kroon, do order and ordain this document. That
covers it all! Fair, responsive, representative – we do order and
ordain this document of law under which all people are to be
considered as being equals under each of those laws herein ordained
under the terms of this document.

"Now I'm back
in a muddle. Why must words be so hard to cope with? Why doesn't
this come as easily as words usually do for me?

"What?"

Jak Tall, who
often called, came in to ask what was happening and Sop told
him.

"I thought you
had the preamble already set," Jak said.

"I have
everything very much as I want it," Sop replied. "I know exactly
what is to be said I merely am having very serious trouble saying
it EFFECTIVELY."

Jak took a cup
of bev from the refrigerator unit and had the recorder print the
last entries. He chewed the twig and looked thoughtful for a
moment.

"Hmm-um. In
order to form a fair, responsive and representative government, we,
the people of Kroon, do order and ordain this document. Fair, in
that each person on Kroon will be treated equally under all laws
and only laws passed under the authority of this document shall
have force. Responsive, in that this document permits, nay demands,
that those in government hear and heed what each person makes known
to him, for he is to be removed from government should ever he fail
to do so. Representative, in that the terms set forth in this
document lay a clear guideline whereunder those persons endowed
with the power of office will be selected by the people themselves
and will remain in that office only so long as the people suffer
them that position.

"This document
or the resulting government may be changed or dissolved by the
people at anytime fairness, responsiveness or decency is deemed to
be abandoned by those who, by its terms, are in those offices. We
hold it to be obvious truth that government's powers must be vested
in those governed or true fairness cannot exist and further that
law must be responsive to the needs of a society or chaos and
tyranny reign.

"We hold that
it shall be forever incumbent upon each person to hold constant an
unswaying vigilance over the actions of those selected to office,
that they not abuse such power.

"This charge
and responsibility we give all citizens of Klarstenland, that their
vigilance never sleep."

Sop stared at
his friend in awe. "You never fail to amaze me! That is ... poetic!
It is powerful, short and exactly to the point!"

"Oh, it can be
improved on," Jak insisted. "The articles are mostly stated clearly
already. I see no reason to try to be so poetic or theatrical with
the constitution, though this preamble is important, I think. It
spells out the exact purpose of the constitution."

"I am sure it
could be improved, but you have added spontaneity, which is always
better than theatricality and, yes, the document is now complete. I
am a lawyer so my trouble was in trying to say something plainly
and with a flair while thinking in petit legalisms.

"I consider the
thing complete!

"Now I guess I
will go mad. There is nothing more for me to do here."

"How are you at
using tools? We always need help in maintenance. I never get one
thing finished before there're two more calls waiting for my
attention. I want to figure a better way to handle these drops from
the helicopters. There's always some breakage of the more fragile
equipment."

"Great Gods!
You aren't saying those vials of plague are being broken out there
are you?!"

Jak laughed and
assured him, "No. Plague isn't brought. We grow our own. They bring
flasks and test tubes, retorts – that sort of thing."

The com buzzed
and Sop answered. He talked for a few minutes with Enn Far, then
passed the call to the labs for Mi Yinn.

"Things are
getting scary on the mainland," he said. "That was Far. He just got
out of a service for a councilwoman who died of the plague. He is
deeply concerned at the pervasive sense of hopelessness the people
feel. He says Dr. Ponn told him some may be immune to the virus,
but they would still be carriers. That is really very frightening
because they would never show any symptoms, but could spread it to
everybody else around them."

Jak shook his
head. "I hope the people come up with something here, and soon. I
don't think I really want to be one of the thousand people on the
planet who survives it if it comes to that."

"Nobody wants
life on those terms, I guess. When I came here it was to run from
the plague and to ensure I would survive if the whole damned rest
of the race died. I did not stop to think then, I simply ran.

"Well, I've had
plenty of time to consider since and I do not want to survive on
those terms!"

Jak grinned.
"That sort of thing happens when you simply react to a thing
without thinking. What you've done then is lay a large percentage
of the survival of the entire Kroon race directly on your own
spirit. You're now in a position – inescapable, if it comes to that
– where you're responsible to and for the whole Kroon race itself.
I knew that. I didn't want to come. Dr. Yinn laid it right on my
spirit before this place was even begun. My responsibility started
at that moment whatever comes of any of it while you can wait until
it's resolved one way or another. I don't know whether I should
feel honor or hatred."