E c tubb, p.14
E C Tubb, page 14
“But... ?”
The voice died as Gregson replaced his handset. Merrill, lounging on the edge of the desk, looked curiously at his superior officer. “What was that all about?”
“My business. “ Gregson glared impatiently at the young man. “What are you doing here, anyway? I ordered every officer into No-Weight to conduct the search. “
“The search is finished, “ said Merrill easily. “I’ve taken back the dueling knives you issued out to the men, and returned them to the stadiums. The men themselves have gone back to their work. “
“Did you find them?”
“Who?”
“You know who I mean, Merrill. West and Curtway. Did you find them?”
“We found and eliminated seven people. Five women and two men. “ Merrill paused with calculated deliberation. “Jay and his friend were not among them. “
“What!”
“We didn’t find either of the two men you wanted. “
“That’s impossible! I watched Jay enter No-Weight and I know that Curtway was hiding there. Waste, Merrill! Are you telling me that you’ve fallen down on the job?”
“I’m telling you that we couldn’t find people who weren’t there to be found. “
“Impossible!”
“Keep saying that, “ Merrill sneered. “I tell you that we searched No-Weight from one end to the other and we eliminated everyone we found. Jay and Curtway weren’t to be found, therefore they couldn’t have been in No-Weight. “ Merrill slipped from the edge of the desk and stared down at his chief. “To me that’s simple logic-unless you want me to believe that they were invisible and slipped through solid metal. “
“I can’t understand it. “ Gregson stared suspiciously at the young officer, his hatred and fear returning with renewed force. Merrill was getting to be dangerous. The man was ambitious, too ambitious, and, now that Jay had let him down, Gregson knew that he would have to find a new weapon against Merrill, and fast. He gestured towards the door.
“Return to duty. “
Merrill hesitated, wondering whether now wouldn’t be the best time to eliminate his chief and so gain his coveted position. He could do it so easily; next to him, Gregson was an old man and long out of practice in the delicate art of killing a man with his bare hands. Memory of Quentin and his warning came just as he was about to reach for the other’s throat. Sucking in his breath, Merrill forced himself to control his emotions. He turned just as he reached the door.
“When are you going to see the Captain?”
“Why?”
“I thought that perhaps you’d like me to come with you. “ Merrill smiled with superior knowledge. “After all, as I conducted the search the Captain might like to have a first-hand report on what we found. “
“I’ll relay the report, “ snapped Gregson. He stared pointedly at the young man. “Return to your duty and leave the thinking to me. “
“Yes, sir!” Merrill made the title sound like an insult.
Gregson sighed as he stared at the closing door and, despite his iron calm, felt a mounting sense of danger. Jay and Curtway had escaped the search, a search for which he alone was responsible. The Barbs were dead, yes, but the death of seven people would hardly justify arming Ship personnel, taking them from their normal duties, and the power-loss caused by illuminating the entire area of No-Weight.
And Jay and Curtway were still alive.
Jay didn’t matter; that is he hadn’t mattered until now, but if Curtway had told him what he knew, and if Merrill had found them, listened to them and hidden them somewhere, waiting for his chance to take them to the Captain....
Gregson stared down at the surface of his desk and his face grew bleak as he visualized what must be the outcome of any such move. He shivered a little as if at a return of his recurrent dream, feeling in imagination the plastic bag of the men in olive, the sharp knives of the medical students, the final violation of the dreaded converters. All of that would happen if they reached the Captain. But if he were the Captain...
Gregson reached for the phone, dialed a number, and waited impatiently for the connection to be made.
“Yes?”
“Gregson here. Conway?”
“That’s right. “ Anxiety sharpened the psychologist’s voice. “Anything wrong?”
“Plenty. Too many people know too much. Curtway for one. “
“But you told me that he was dead. “
“I thought that he was, but he isn’t. Never mind that now. “ Gregson glanced towards the door and lowered his voice. “Listen. Psycho must eject the cards of Jay West- got that?”
“Jay West, yes?”
“And Merrill. Both psych-police officers. You have their numbers on file. I want those men slated for elimination and the sooner you have their cards ejected the better. Can you do it now?”
“Now?” Conway sounded troubled. “I don’t know. It won’t be as simple as last time. You want me to locate those cards, alter them or the master plate so that they will fail to meet specifications, and return the machine to normal. “
“Feed in the following data, “ snapped Gregson. “Both are guilty of inefficiency in that both have aroused suspicion through sloppy work. Merrill has delusions of grandeur, Jay is paranoic. Waste, Conway! This is important! Can you do it or can’t you?”
“I’ll try. “ Conway didn’t sound too hopeful. “Why, Gregson, is something wrong?”
“Yes. “ Gregson paused, letting the tension of the psychologist mount, then spoke again with sharp urgency, “Curtway knows what we’ve done. Jay West knows it too, and I think that Merrill has a suspicion. All of them want to reach the Captain. “ He paused again. “You know what will happen if they do. “
“I can guess. “ Conway sounded as though he wanted to be sick. “You’ll protect me, Gregson?”
“I’m busy protecting myself. “ Gregson bared his teeth as he guessed the result of his words on the nervous psychologist. “Listen. There’s only one way now in which we can save ourselves. What the Captain learns doesn’t matter -if I am the Captain. Well?”
“Not mutiny, “ said Conway weakly. “I won’t stand for mutiny. “
“Then can you get me the cards? I wouldn’t dare eliminate Merrill unless I have official orders, and even if I do there’s still the others to worry about. “
“Can’t you eliminate them as well?”
“Yes, if I can find them. “ Gregson gripped the receiver until his knuckles showed white beneath the skin, cursing the psychologist for his nervous reluctance. “I can’t order eliminations without orders from Psycho. You fixed Curtway’s card, why can’t you fix the others?”
“Curtway was an old man and due for elimination anyway. All I had to do was feed in a little false data. But the others are different. Both are young, officers, and assumed to be stable. “ Conway hesitated. “Can you give me three shifts?”
“No. “
“Two then. I can’t do it in less. “
“Then forget it, “ snarled Gregson furiously. “Wait until Quentin sends for you. “ Gregson swore again. “Waste! I’ve no time for a man who is too timid to save his own skin. “
“No. “ Conway gulped, his voice echoing against Gregson’s ear. “I’ll help you. What do you want me to do?”
“Meet me in the Bridge. Wait for me if you have to; spin Quentin some tale of being worried about Psycho, anything, but do nothing until I get there. Nothing, understand?”
“Yes, but-“
Gregson hung up before Conway could ask further questions. The man was a weakling, a cog in a machine, terrified of his own imagination and the fear of losing his life.
But he was the only one on whom, at the moment, Gregson could rely.
He sat motionless at his desk, his face heavy with thought as he tried to foresee the future. Quentin must die. That part wouldn’t be difficult; the Captain was an old man and would probably collapse at the first pressure on the carotids. Conway would be willing to swear that the death had been from natural causes and, with his backing, Gregson could take over. Merrill would be quieted by promotion to the office of Chief of Psych-Police. Quieted long enough, that is, for the new Captain to arrange his elimination. Conway would have to go as well-the rest of the Council wouldn’t argue-and then he could rule for as long as he managed to stave off natural death.
Gregson sighed as he thought about it, feeling some of his tension leave him now that he had a concrete plan, then glanced up in annoyance as a man burst into the inner office.
“Henderley! What’s the matter?”
“This is terrible, “ gasped the Chief of Medical. “I’ve run all the way here from the wards. Gregson! We’ve got to see the Captain. “
“I know. Malick phoned me and told me about it. I’m meeting him in the Bridge. “
“Malick?” Henderley blinked. “How did he know? I’ve come straight down from Medical and haven’t told anyone yet. “
“He saw the tapes, “ explained Gregson. “Something about old, white-haired men being shown on the children’s viewers. “ He stared at Henderley. “That’s what you were talking about, wasn’t it?”
“No. “ Henderley dismissed the subject as unimportant against his own news. “It’s worse than that. I’ve a patient in maternity, a woman, pregnant. “
“Have you?” Despite his own worries, Gregson smiled. “Is pregnancy so rare then?”
“Of course not, but I’ve never known a case like this before. “ He stared at Gregson. “You don’t understand. This is an old woman, one out of marriageable status. She’s twenty-six years of age-and she’s going to have a baby!”
Henderley sat down as if stunned by the repetition of the fact.
The Bridge was crowded when Gregson arrived with Henderley. Quentin sat, as he always sat, at the head of his desk, while before him Malick, Folden, Conway and a young girl sat uncomfortably on chairs. The Captain nodded as Gregson and the medical officer entered, gesturing them toward vacant seats.
“I’m glad you saw fit to come, Gregson. It appears as if we are going to have a full-scale Council meeting. “
“Are we?” Gregson looked pointedly at the girl. “Is it normal procedure to allow Ship personnel to sit in Council?”
“Susan Curtway’s my witness, “ snapped Malick pettishly. “She saw the tapes and will back up what I have to say. “ He looked at the Captain. “You laughed at me before, but this time you’ll have to admit that I’m right. Those tapes must be stopped. “
“Indeed?” Quentin didn’t shrug but the tone of his voice left no doubt as to how he felt. He looked at Henderley.
“I already know why you are here. You have a patient, a female, who is expecting a baby. Correct?”
“She is twenty-six years of age and should be barren. “ Henderley sounded as if he still couldn’t believe it. “You know as well as I do that all females are passed through the sterilizer when they reach twenty-five, or sooner depending on the number of children they have. “
“Perhaps she missed the sterilizer, “ suggested Folden. Henderley snorted.
“Impossible! Her case history shows that she was exposed to the radiations at the correct time. My department is not at fault in this matter. “ He glared at Conway. “If you want my opinion I’d say that the root of the trouble lies with Psycho. Malick and his tapes, and we know that Psycho issues the educational tapes on relayed channels, proves that something must be wrong. “
“It proves nothing except your own incompetence, “ stormed the psychologist. “The builders determined which tapes were to be shown when and there’s nothing I can do to alter the settings. As for that woman, “ he glared at Henderley, “the mere fact that she’s having a baby proves that she couldn’t have been exposed to the sterility-inducing radiations as you claim. If she had, then she wouldn’t be pregnant. “
“Are you doubting my word?” Anger flushed the medical officer’s cheeks with red.
“I’m stating facts, “ snapped Conway. He appealed to the Captain. “You know that there’s nothing wrong with Psycho, don’t you?”
“I trust the builders, “ said Quentin enigmatically. He looked at Gregson. “I don’t recall giving you orders to search No-Weight. Why did you do so?”
“I thought it time something was done to eliminate the Barbs. “ Gregson was annoyed to find so many people with the Captain. Their presence made his plans of assassination impossible to execute and he had a sickening impression of time running out on him. “I took it on myself to sweep out the vermin. “
“Were you successful?”
“Seven dead. “
“I see. “ Quentin stared thoughtfully at the chief of psych-police and Gregson had the impression that the old man was laughing at him. “And yet you failed, didn’t you? You didn’t eliminate the people the whole search was to find. “ He smiled outright at Gregson’s stunned expression. “Don’t look so amazed. Surely you didn’t think that the Captain of the Ship was just a nominal figurehead?”
Gregson bit his lip, quickly revising his opinion of the old man. Quentin knew! He knew too much and, as he thought about it, Gregson felt a sudden fear that he might know far more than anyone had ever given him credit for. Merrill could have told him about the search, probably had, but what else had others told him? He forced himself to listen to the thin, penetrating tones as the Captain spoke.
“First, in order to allay your fears, there is nothing wrong with Psycho. You have become so used to depending on the machine that anything out of your ordinary experience is beyond your comprehension. What you have forgotten, all of you, is that Psycho is a machine built for a specific purpose. It was built more than three hundred years ago and the men who built it built it well. “
“I have never doubted it, “ Conway said quickly. “It’s the others who mistrust Psycho. “ He glared at Malick and Henderley.
“And they are right to do so. “ Quentin stared the psychologist into silence. “Blind trust in the work of others can be dangerous. The builders were not omnipotent, but, aside from some tampering, the machine which we know as Psycho has operated perfectly. It is still operating perfectly. “
“You said that Psycho has been tampered with, “ said Gregson thickly. “Was that an accusation?”
“No. It was a fact. “
“Who?” Conway stared up, his face livid with fear. “Who has dared to touch Psycho?”
“Do you really want me to answer that, Conway?” The Captain spoke to the psychologist but his eyes never left Gregson. “Shall we say that certain men, terrified of death, had the brilliant idea of adjusting their cards so that they could not be ejected from Psycho? Shall we say that, Gregson?”
“Why ask me?” Gregson stared at the old man and felt the sweat of apprehension moisten his forehead. Quentin knew! Merrill? He doubted it, since the officer couldn’t have known all the details. But if he had caught Curtway and the electronics man had told him what he had discovered...
Gregson snarled, an animal-like sound coming from deep within his throat, and his hands, as he sat hunched in the chair, hooked of their own volition into claws. Quentin knew. Therefore, in order that he could remain alive, Quentin must die.
“Merrill!”
Gregson paid no attention to the command rapped in the thin voice. Years of indoctrination fought against his survival instinct as he tried to throw himself towards the old man. Quentin was dangerous to his existence. Quentin must die. But Quentin was the Captain and to attack him would be mutiny. Gregson had been conditioned against even the thought of mutiny all his life and now, when he wanted to break that conditioning, he found he was unable to do so.
Suddenly Merrill was beside him. Whether he had been there all the time or whether he had stepped from some hidden room, Gregson didn’t know. Hatred for the officer and what he represented burst in his tormented brain. Merrill threatened him. Merrill had to die.
Gregson snarled again as he lunged for the other’s exposed throat.
Quentin watched them as they struggled, his face impassive, his fingers resting lightly on a row of buttons set flush with the surface of his desk. He pressed one, a panel slid aside, and Jay, together with Curtway and the remaining Barbs, entered the room.
“Separate them. “
Bosco grunted as he grabbed Merrill. Murry caught Greg-son’s arms and held the man until he grew calm.
“You will seat yourselves, “ ordered Quentin drily. “If you wish to continue the battle you may do so in the proper quarter. The stadium is the place for dueling, not the Bridge. “
“I wasn’t dueling, “ snapped Merrill. He sneered as he looked towards Gregson, slumped over, numbed with the knowledge of his own defeat. “Do I get his job?”
“No. “
“Why not? You promised me-“
“I promised nothing. “ The whip-lash of the Captain’s voice echoed around the crowded room. “If children assume too much, must I be to blame? For that’s all you are, all of you. Children. Stupid, blind, ignorant children!” The scorn and contempt in his voice lashed them to silence and they sat, like the children he had called them, listening to his next words.
“You come running to me with your petty fears and yet, all the time, the facts are before your very eyes. You plot and scheme to extend your lives, even”-Quentin glanced towards Gregson-“toy with ambitions of ultimate power. And yet none of you has the sense or understanding to realize that, to me, all this is an old, old story. I have sat here and studied you all before. Not you, but others exactly like you. Men, lifted to a temporary power, struggling to extend that power and establish themselves as rulers of the Ship. Always I have beaten them. I always will because to me you are as transparent as glass, your motives childishly simple.
“Gregson wants to live, and who can blame him? Not I. Not Malick, whose breeding for a high survival factor is directly responsible for that laudable ambition. Conway is weak but agreed to help for mutual benefit. Merrill is ambitious, and if I was fool enough to give him Gregson’s position, would be plotting against me within five years. Curtway, a good man, honest, and yet unable to see further than his nose. Henderley, a doctor, and yet a man who, like Malick, worships a machine. Jay West, one of the new generation. A man able to think and to make his own decision’s, and yet even he doesn’t know why. “ Quentin paused and looked at the faces before him.
