A Simple Truth (31 page)

Two hours later Naganda turned from the monitor and stood to face the assembly. 

"I consider that my work here is done
,"
he said, much to Lincoln's surprise.  Things were becoming really
promising;
it seemed an odd time to withdraw.

"I am satisfied that there is not and never has been a military threat from the aliens.  Therefore there is no need for any direct government involvement.  I trust we can leave future liaison to be managed by Dr Lincoln and his able colleagues."  There were one or two solemn nods of agreement from the other government representatives and someone said
,
"
Hear
,
hear
!
"
encouragingly.

Lincoln was surprised but very pleased to hear these words.  Naganda had involved himself at a most crucial stage.  There was little doubt that his wholehearted support had averted further trouble and possible disaster.  But as he had said, his part had been played, and it was now time for the specialists to take over.  Even so, Lincoln could not very well agree openly with him, some minor protestation was in order.

"Your handling of this encounter has been decisive in bringing matters to this state of friendly interchange
,"
he said, "and your continued..."

Naganda put up a hand to stop any further oratory and said
with a smile
,
"C
ome on Arthur, you're itching to get into the driving seat.  As far as I'm concerned it's all yours, you can call on me to resume control if you need to, but somehow I don't think you will.  The ferry and Sharma are of course at your disposal for as long as you wish, and I hope you will not hesitate to come to me for any other assistance, finance,
specialists
or equipment.  I shall be glad to help in any way I can.
"

Naganda grew very solemn once more.  "One more thing
,"
he said, addressing himself to the other government representatives, "I want to repeat my earlier warning.  Any act of hostility towards the aliens or their vessel is an act of war against Africa, and it will be dealt with accordingly."  He then had a brief word with his chief engineer and his staff began to pack up their things ready to leave.

He walked over to Lincoln and clasped his hand.  "It's been a pleasure working with you and your team Arthur.  Good Luck, and I meant what I said about any resource you need, please come to me."

"Thanks Tony, I will.  And than
ks for stepping in when you did.
God knows what would have happened if you hadn't."

Lincoln watched as Naganda and his party left.  Their private plane was waiting and would soon have them all back home.  He had not expected him to quit so soon, or at all even, but Lincoln realised that here was a true commander.  He was there when his presence was needed, he had strength and used it wisely, and he also knew when his usefulness was over.

"I suggest that this meeting be terminated
,"
Lincoln announced to the government representatives and the world at large.  There were no
objections;
in fact some of the onlookers looked decidedly relieved.  "Information and bulletins will be issued regularly.  And finally, on behalf of the WSA, may I offer my sincere thanks for all your help and support".  He then ordered the
communication
system to be shut down.  A wave of relief at not being continuously watched passed over everyone present, so strong as to be almost tangible.

"Big brother has gone to bed
,"
Lincoln summarised cheerfully.  His
colleagues
were much less used to public scrutiny than he was and the atmosphere changed abruptly from then on.  They were a proper team again and could now work in comfort.

***************

"This is the beginning of a new age
,"
observed Sharma wistfully when they were back in the ferry and had stowed their suits and equipment.

Knight smiled.  "I'm glad something can move you
,"
he retorted playfully. 

Sharma looked round sharply.  "I'm not completely
insensitive;
I like to do a job properly but..."  "I'm sorry
,"
interrupted Knight, somewhat taken aback, "that was unkind.  And you're right, I doubt if anything will ever be the same again."

"I'm not thinking of just the technological changes, but the cultural effects
,"
continued Sharma.  Knight was glad his mood was not
broken;
he was evidently one of those people who wax philosophical only rarely, and who do not appreciate
being ribbed
about it.  "This is the first time humanity has had proof that we are not the pinnacle of creation.  I hope it doesn't take away our drive and ambition."

"I
'
d have thought it would add fuel to our ambitions
,"
countered Knight, "at least now we can see what
'
s possible."

"Yes but we've already lost the race.  Humanity can never be better than second best, and we're probably well down the intelligence league.  That knowledge might just extinguish the will to work hard and make steady progress."

Knight felt that this was a very pessimistic outlook, he could foresee nothing but good from this development.  "Time will tell I suppose
,"
he replied.

Further discussion was interrupted by the 'Proceed' indication on the biolab, showing that the micro-organism analyser was ready for use.

One by one Sharma carefully selected the tiny fragments from all the various samples they had painst
akingly gathered.  More than four
hours had been spent in collecting bits
of
everything they could lay their hands on, and it was essential to lose as little time as possible between collection and analysis.  There were samples of most of the construction materials, the tribespeople's clothing and food, plants and fungi, swabs from as many of the surfaces they could reach, and scrapings from the skins of the Scouts and the tribespeople.  There were also liquid and gas samples, again taken from as wide an area as possible.
  In return Sharma and Knight had been happy to supply the tissue samples that the Guardians had requested.

The little analyser would check all chemical and biological constituents, and working in conjunction with a computer based in the Institution of Microbiology in New Delhi would catalogue each with a complete specification.  Any that were already known would be identified, and any that weren't would
have their properties analysed
.

When the unit had been taken aboard the ferry it was not thought that any micro-organisms would be identifiable, but
it was now known that
the tribespeople were from earth
so
they
would have
taken with them many
of the
bacteria that had existed on earth at that time. 
However
micro-organisms evolve very quickly, so it was likely that some had changed very significantly since their departure.  Whilst these might be harmless to the shipboard humans they could be deadly to people, plants or animals on earth.  The significance of this routine task had therefore taken on a new importance.

Knight and Sharma were well aware that they had at least two weeks of quarantine before they could rejoin their families and friends.  During that time body fluid and tissue samples would be taken regularly and the population and growth or decline of any foreign organisms monitored in detail.

In this way it was hoped to notice quickly any build-up in any part of the body, and develop measures to counteract possible harmful effects.  It was entirely possible that both Knight and Sharma would d
ie of an unknown infection whilst
in quarantine.  It was just one of the many risks they had accepted in embarking on the mission.

The aliens had screened the humans for
harmful
infection when they first came aboard, but since then they had been kept separate from all other vessel life forms.  They only came into physical contact with the Scouts, and then only very infrequently.  The Scouts were effectively immune to any normal micro-organism
and were therefore unlikely to pass any foreign infection on to the humans
.  They had no need to breathe, and only needed to ingest
very small quantities of
a specially formulated set of materials
for growth and cellular maintenance
since
their energy source was built
-
in for life.  They were therefore
largely
invulnerable to attack from bacteria.  Physical injury provided the only means of infection and their tough bodies made such events very rare.  Transfer of micro-organisms from one area to another was prevented by the tunnels which apart from providing a transport system also sterilised the external body surface of each traveller.

The little mach
ine digested all it was offered;
then commenced the process of separating biological matter from non-biological, and feeding all its findings to New Delhi via the ferry's radio link.

"All systems functioning
,"
announced Knight.

"Right then, let's go
,"
said Sharma, and the navigational computer gently eased the ferry away from its giant companion and seamlessly took up a suitable re-entry trajectory.  In less than an hour they would be back on earth inside the specially prepared quarantine facility.  But it would be a long time before they would completely regain their freedom.  Lincoln had toyed with the idea of allowing them to stay on the alien craft for the necessary time, but had decided against it.  It seemed a little undiplomatic to make such a request on the grounds of protecting the earth from alien germs when two earthmen had taken all their germs aboard the alien vessel uninvited.

For at least the next fourteen days there would be no physical contact between humans and aliens but there would be a fruitful exchange by radio.  A link had already been set up and would be used as often as possible.

Contrary to popular belief Knight was looking forward to his seclusion.  He was ready for a rest after the exciting events of the last few days.  He could speak to and see almost anyone he wished, he could keep up to date and assist in developments with the aliens, in fact the only thing prohibited was actual physical contact with
the outside world
.  He and Sharma would not be short of company
though;
a team of six physicians would be with them during their stay, carrying out the necessary tests and themselves acting as guinea pigs in checking for transfer of infection.  Yes, it would be quiet and pleasant.

"Home again
,"
murmured
Sharma drowsily as he peered out at the ground below.

"This is a sight that I never tire of
,"
mused Knight as they glided down through the gradually thickening atmosphere, watching the moonlit scene slowly grow in size and detail, and identifying individual cities and towns by the layout of their twinkling lights.

Thanks to the navigation computer they could sit back and enjoy the ride.  Once they were clear of the high gee zone at initial atmosphere contact they had nothing to do but wait.  In emergency Sharma could take over control and bring the craft to a safe landing manually, but such an emergency had not arisen in twenty years, such was the reliability achieved by modern automatic flight control systems.

Cairns was approaching swiftly, the lights of individual buildings could just be made out, glittering invitingly like tiny welcoming beacons.  The WSA complex loomed up beyond the city, growing steadily until the illuminated runway filled the field of view.

"Am I seeing things
?"
exclaimed Knight suddenly.  Sharma just stared ahead, speechless.  The whole length of the runway and for at least fifty metres each side at the far end were people, thousands upon thousands of people.

"Lincoln said there was a crowd waiting to cheer us home but there must be twenty thousand down there."

They were cheering, shouting, waving flags and banners, jumping up and down, and generally demonstrating all the symptoms of mass hysteria.

"Looks like we're famous
,"
said Knight.

"Just a bit
,"
agreed Sharma, and then both began to laugh.  It was ridiculous.  They had looked forward to a quiet homecoming with maybe a few people around to welcome them but nothing like this, nothing at all like this.  They were celebrities, heroes, they were the first humans ever to encounter directly an alien race and the public were not going to let them forget it in a hurry.

They had good reason to be grateful for the quarantine restrictions.  If they had been physically available to this crowd they might well have had to face much more than two weeks of confinement, but in hospital.  As it was the entire vessel was manoeuvred into one end of one of the airport buildings so that they avoided any contact with the outside.  All the necessary seals were established and only then were they allowed out of the ferry.  Whenever they appeared at any of the windows the crowd waved and shouted to catch their attention, and all communication channels into the building were jammed for hours with calls from well-wishers and reporters.