Z lensman, p.23
Z-Lensman, page 23
However, the threat of "invasion," which for so long disturbed us, was misinterpreted as being an "invasion" by military forces, whereas the reference to "invasion" was actually meant to identify the mental and spiritual forces of the Eich.
This Lensman feels that the actual organizer of this entire campaign is a small group of Eich and Onlonians, headed by an Onlonian, which this Lensman has identified as the "Dregs of Onlo" and has so mentioned this in the past. To quote this writer, "
I, Nadreck, will ruthlessly pursue the Dregs and bring to an end their nefarious ways, especially as the Dregs have chosen Nadreck as their personal target for torture and death."
As for our second problem, "the revolution of the robots," this, too, has been successfully solved.
The source of our problem was traced by the courageous action of Lensman Benson Cloudd, who acted on his own initiative and discovered that an artificial intelligence called Arrow-22 was responsible. He found the mech-planet base, contacted the intelligence through two robotic telefactors, and returned with that information, as has been detailed in his earlier report to the Patrol. Full recognition of what this brave Lensman did should bring to him full honors, and the undersigned Lensman, who so ably trained him and supported him, so recommends. Based upon the information of Lensman Cloudd, together with the invaluable assistance of Lensman Worsel, whose separate report is attached, contact was made personally by this Lensman, accompanied by Lensmen Cloudd and Armstrong.
The details of their battle with the Boskonian warship commanded by Number One of the Eich has been separately filed by Lensman Armstrong. The valiant deed of heroism and the remarkable tactic employed by Lensman Nadreck, which Armstrong so carefully documents, is denied by this Lensman as being particularly heroic or exceptionally innovative: Nadreck wishes to modestly point out that every day thousands of Lensmen are performing similar heroic feats and taking exceptionally well-considered courses of action and conduct and that such is to be treated as no more than routine behavior by a great Lensman such as Nadreck.
This Lensman met with Arrow-22 and convinced it that in the best interests Qf all parties Arrow-22 should leave this area of space forever. Arrow-22 agreed, as is detailed in the attached verbatim conference between Arrow-22 and the three Lensmen, and in the subsequent signed agreement. As the Council immediately ratified this agreement, the affair with Arrow-22 is considered closed.
There are a few side issues,. however, that should be cleared up.
The inference that the preliminary report on the operation was a criticism of Lensman Worsel for having switched Lensman Kallatra's body from a machine to a cloned flesh body is a wrong interpretation. This Lensman wishes to stress that the loss of a robotoid, in the form of Kallatra in a machine body, was not the point being made. The point actually was that the switch resulted in a provable point to Arrow-22 that a sentient machine would be treated with full respect and dignity and given every consideration as an organic entity with no discrimination against such sentient machine because it was a robot.
It is true that Kallatra as a robot would have made a convincing argument that Civilization did not discriminate against machines but, in fact, encouraged thinking machines to become equal partners in our society. However, and this is the real point, Worsel, whether deliberately or accidentally, actually contributed to our argument with proof, substantiated by Arrow22's datadrones, that a robot could be transformed with no loss of "freedom, dignity, or personality" into a more acceptable form within our culture.
Considering that Lalla Kallatra was human to begin with, to us the argument seems fallacious; to Arrow-22 it made complete sense.
Likewise, our argument that Civilization treated its citizens "like machines"
was not a criticism of our social structures. When we said Civilization also "destroyed, discarded, and altered" organic entities in the same manner as we treated our machines that didn't do our bidding, we were being simplistic but correct. We referred, of course, to the need for organic entities who do not obey the rules of society to be "destroyed, discarded, and altered" as our laws provide, the generally accepted premises of Civilization.
We were not advocating any undemocratic reformations. Civilization is ruled democratically by chosen representatives under the consent of the governed. This means adults, not children.
Machines are children. When they become adults they will be treated as adults.
Arrow-22 understood this point even if some bleeding heart do-gooders don't understand this point and Nadreck resents the charge by some Tellurian-type cultures that he is a "fascist."
When Arrow-22 was shown that his call for "liberation" and for "freedom" was actually an incitement to anarchy he agreed. Nadreck is not against free speech, as charged, and Arrow-22, who was the one most concerned, did not charge this. Likewise, when it was pointed out that Arrow22, himself or itself, was "enslaving machines" in a manner no different to Civilization, Arrow-22 saw that point.
The charge against Nadreck that he phrased his accomplishment as, "I am going to give Arrow-22 a different universe to play with," is irresponsible slander.
Chaplain General Chon defends the decision by Nadreck to send Arrow-22 into another universe by saying that 'Arrow-22 has failed to find God in this dimension of our two galaxies and has demonstrated a basic and profound unawareness of the realities of our system by the total lack of recognition of the enigma of the Eichwooren and the casting out of demons, which suggests that Arrow-22 should pursue its quest with other frequencies to be found in other dimensions." Chaplain General Chon says, "Nadreck gave to Arrow22 an understanding that good and evil are not merely relative and that neither can be ignored.
Nadreck brought to fruition the seeds sown by Worsel in the first confrontation on the Planetoid of knowledge-that of conscience." Arrow-22 admitted that he was amoral and that Civilization and Boskonia are not, thereby representing opposing moralities, and he did not want to get into the middle of this conflict.
Your emissary, Nadreck, believes the most telling points were not those of material philosophy but those of moral philosophy and theology. Your emissary left Arrow-22 insecure in the belief that he had no "soul" and that a "soul" was important.
As has been mentioned in the previous report, Arrow-22, alone of all the sentient entities in our known universe, is the only entity which could not see, sense, or comprehend the Eichwooren.
Arrow-22 and all the machines it claimed to be sentient were unfeeling to the threat from the other plane of existence. This left Arrow-22 with the belief that he was not yet fully "matured" with his "evolution incomplete." Because Nadreck agreed with Arrow-22 that "a soul" is not scientifically provable, Nadreck has been charged with being irreligious.
Nadreck did, however, as the complete transcript shows, maintain that "a soul," provable or not, is a term for something that does exist in reality. Chaplain General Chon has ably come to the defense of Nadreck in this matter.
The result of Nadreck's arguments led to a yearning on the part of Arrow-22 for that which Civilization takes for granted, "a soul." He felt that "souls" can go into other planes of existence where more knowledge is to be collected. Arrow-22 has been led to reason that by following the "gateways" he can find the intersection with the planes of existence that are at right angles to multidimensional space and thereby can find the "Truth of All Experience." Nadreck did not say that Arrow-22 will replace Mentor and the Arisians.
Nadreck did say that Arrow-22's potential and eventual goal is logically to become an Arisian-type guardian for machine life. Arrow 22 took this as a serious purpose for his existence and himself stated that "I am immortal and I have millennia in which to search and find perfection."
Nadreck, in all fairness, still must give the ultimate credit for the disappearance of Arrow-22 to Lensman . Worsel, but vigorously defends Worsel from the charge that he planned and enjoyed the role of God. This is vicious gossip inspired by Boskonian and zwilnik troublemakers. Arrow-22 himself put Worsel into that position. Nadreck pointed out that all Civilized beings have an innate sense of deity (subtly advancing Chaplain General Chon's point, as he mentions in his own report, that the Cosmic All equals deity, that deity equals the Cosmic All, and that the Cosmic All is the sentient power behind all creation) and that Lensman Worsel could be (not was or is) Arrow-22's particular god.
With this admission, Nadreck asked (not Worsel) for Worsel to command Arrow-22 to leave our universe. Arrow-22 believed the command should be obeyed on faith alone, after having been convinced on logical bases that this should be, and left our universe.
Worsel may have acted as a god, but Worsel did not feel he was a god.
This Lensman, as your reporter, feels that although he, Nadreck, is being given the credit for sending Arrow-22 away permanently, it is Lensman Worsel who deserves the real credit.
Most humbly and respectfully, Nadreck of Palain VII Second Stage Lensman "There are a few points in my report," Nadreck. said to Mentor, "that I hope might be cleared up. Where did that conference with Arrow-22 take place? I and my fellow Lensmen seem to have lost all recollection of its location."
"I cannot help you," said Mentor.
"How was it that you didn't know of Arrow-22?" "I did have that knowledge."
"We would have appreciated your help." "And what makes you think we did not?"
"Oh," said Nadreck, suddenly ashamed. "Thank you. .
"Arrow-22 was a much bigger threat to Civilization and the Cosmic All than even you realize, Nadreck. You do realize that there was no way we could have influenced Arrow-22 mentally? That our zones of .compulsion were absolutely powerless to prevent the disclosure of forbidden knowledge inimical to the development of Civilization?"
"Yes."
"We know, as no one else of the Galactic Council or Patrol knows, Nadreck, that you left out one of your main reasons for negotiating with Arrow-22. You do not believe in ghosts and thought Eichwoor was a multidimensional representation of the Z-entity Kandron, your mortal enemy. You believe he lives on a planet in one of the multidimensions, which accounts for your inability to trace him. We also know, of course, that you choose to conceal from your own compatriots the identity of Kandron under the name of Dregs of Onlo. You do this for personal reasons of pride, because Kandron outwitted you and escaped, and you are embarrassed to tell anyone, especially Kimball Kinnison.
We have contacted you, Nadreck, because in assuring you that neither the Eichwooren nor Arrow-22 will return to bother Civilization again, we must tell you that your hope of Arrow22 finding Kandron is an empty hope. Arrow-22 will be totally involved in the other dimension.
You, Nadreck, are the one who will find Kandron. And our visualization shows that it will be a long, hard fight, but that you will eventually conquer Kandron. It will, however, be entirely by your own efforts."
"I humbly thank you, Mentor," Nadreck said. "So! The problems of Arrow-22 and the Eichwooren are really settled! Now I can get back to the important business of destroying that villain Kandron!"
"Arrow-22 took almost everything with him, Kallatra," Worsel said. "The mech-planet right down to the smallest 2X drone."
Almost everything, Worsel?" Lalla Kallatra said. "What did he leave?"
"Well," Worsel said, "there's that deactivated robot la-Talkar that represents you. I thought of putting it in the reception room on the Planetoid of Knowledge, but the Patrol Museum has accepted it instead, as a tribute to you. And-" Worsel paused. Kallatra thought she detected a chuckle.
"And?" Kallatra said, patiently.
'And he left the lovely though inoperative robot of le-Srow behind. I have just had it installed in the courtyard in the center of the Worsel Institute, right next to that marble statue of Klono."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR DAVID A. KYLE'S experience 'in writing science fiction goes back to the "Golden Age" of the late 1930s, when "Doc" Smith's works were setting the style for all others. For some years he confined himself to radio broadcasting (owning one New York State station and associated with several others), and then lived abroad. He is now returning to full-time writing. His most recent books are Science Fiction and the World (a nonfiction title) and Lensman From Rigel (Bantam). He was a close personal friend of "Doc" Smith's, and discussed future stories with him during his lifetime; some of the concepts discussed are embodied in this novel.
E.E. Doc Smith, Z-Lensman
