Interstellar travel -- Fiction; Science fiction; Short stories
"Fine," I said. "What do you propose?"
"They're investigating, you know," he said, "in the western part of
the country. Rocket bases, atom bomb sites, anything that indicates
advanced technology. Let's give them another menace."
"Sounds good. What are they interested in?" He was a hard fellow to
locate and I didn't try to visualize his face. He came from Ireland I
believe.
"A spaceship," he said. "A very formidable creation, with an incredible
drive."
There was nothing wrong with the basic concept. The ship wouldn't
be real of course. It would merely seem real from the air. We could
accomplish that.
As for the drive, we could manage that too. In a little investigated
part of the spectrum we could create a low and steady output,
suggesting that the drive was idling, ready for instant takeoff.
None of this was impossible for us.
We? Have I said that we're not human? We've existed for a long time on
earth beside Homo Sapiens, and he has only dimly guessed that we are
here. The ordinary limitations of men don't apply to us.
A few of us working together could create an illusionary spaceship,
and an intriguing drive to go with it. This was something flying
saucers couldn't resist. They'd come down when they found they couldn't
investigate from their customary high level flights.
I nodded at the fellow I couldn't see. "Excellent. However, when the
saucer lands you'll have to maintain the illusion. Logistics are
involved too."
"That's easy," he said. "But what if it isn't manned by robots as
you've assumed? You can get inside all right, but a living creature
will discover you."
I looked at the blank spot where I thought he might be. "Really now.
It _has_ to be a robot. No living creature, except us, can stand the
accelerations we've observed."
"But what if we're wrong?" he persisted.
"In that case we'll have time for one quick look," I said. "If it is
living and we're no match for it, we'll run like hell."
There was general laughter and the fellow raised no further objections.
For all I know, he went home. The meeting broke up and everyone except
a few volunteers left. We continued to discuss ways and means.
When the plans seemed fool-proof, I got up. "Just a minute." Another
fellow I didn't recognize interposed. "Suppose everything works the way
you say it will. The saucer lands, and you succeed in getting inside.
What makes you think it will go back to the home planet?"
"Don't overlook our fake spaceship," I said. "If the robot investigator
from the saucer found a real spaceship, that would be important
information. It would be important enough to warrant a quick trip back
to the local base, wherever that may be situated.
"But when the robot can't locate anything, in spite of the evidence
on the instruments, it will be dealing with _top priority_ stuff.
Logically it will have to report back to the prime evaluation center,
on the home planet. I think I'm safe in anticipating a short journey."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account