“And if it isn’t a coincidence?”
“Then they’ll want to meet a representative of the group responsible for the high IQ signal. And we’ll make a bad first impression. The increased bandwidth your therapy creates brings out the ugliest side of our nature. And given human nature, that’s pretty damn ugly. It’s bound to make the galactics nervous.”
“So this is what got you so spooked?”
“Yes. Added to my other misgivings, this was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Plus, there’s another interpretation to this.” He paused. “Are you familiar with the story of the righteous man and the flood?”
Kira tilted her head in thought. She had read voraciously on every subject under the sun, and retained most of it, even when she was normal, but this wasn’t ringing any bells. “If it isn’t about Noah, then no.”
“Not about Noah. Here’s how it goes. A righteous man who has been pious all of his life is on the roof of his house during the mother of all floods. The water just keeps rising. A motorboat drives by and stops in front of his house. “Hop in,” says the man in the boat. The righteous man shakes his head and says, ‘Don’t worry about me. God will save me.’ A few hours later, with the water now just a few feet from his level on the roof, another boat passes. ‘Quick, jump in,’ a woman on the boat says. The righteous man smiles serenely. ‘Thanks, but the Lord will save me. I’m sure of it.’ Finally the water has reached his waist and a helicopter overhead lowers a rope ladder down to him. He ignores it and says a prayer to the Lord, whom he knows will reward a true believer.” Van Hutten paused for effect. “Five minutes later he drowns.”
The physicist seemed delighted by the confused expression on Kira’s face. “So the spirit of this righteous man floats to the pearly gates,” continued van Hutten, “and he sees God. ‘Lord,’ he says. ‘I’ve been a righteous, pious man my entire life. I’m just curious as to why you didn’t save me from the flood. I thought surely you would.’” In reply, God shakes his mighty head and says, ‘Are you kidding? I sent you two boats and a helicopter. What more do you want from me?’”
Kira smiled broadly. “A great tale,” she admitted. Her expression turned thoughtful. “So you’re turning this story around one hundred and eighty degrees, aren’t you? You’re suggesting God sent this alien ship as an extension of his ill will. Just as surely as he sent your righteous man two boats as an extension of his good will.”
Van Hutten’s eyes lit up. “It really is a pleasure speaking to someone who can connect the dots as fast as you,” he said in admiration. “I can’t tell you how much I wish we weren’t at odds on this.”
“Yeah, me too,” mumbled Kira under her breath.
“You’re right, of course. This is another alternative, unlikely though it may be. There’s always the slight possibility that we’re reaching for the forbidden fruit and God wants to slap our hand. Well, maybe by stopping you and destroying your entire supply of gellcaps, I’ll deflect some of this ill will we’ve invoked.”
“So do I become an offering to God?” asked Kira. “To appease the almighty.” After she said this a smile came over her face.
“What’s amusing about that?” asked van Hutten.
“You know I’m not a virgin, right?”
Van Hutten laughed. “No, you’re not an offering. Virginal or otherwise. And just to be clear, I believe that my first theory about your IQ enhancement attracting the aliens here is more likely to be the correct one. But maybe if no one on earth enhances themselves again, the alien ship will change course. Whether it was sent by God or not.”
Kira stared at van Hutten intently. Part of her desperately wanted to write him off as a crackpot, but part of her knew his speculations could not be dismissed out of hand.
“I think the world of you,” added van Hutten. “We just have two different views of the future of humanity, and the wisdom of your ultimate vision. I’ve brought up God throughout because I find these conjectures fascinating, but I’d take the same course even if I weren’t the least bit spiritual. And none of these misgivings, by themselves, would trouble me enough to take this step. Even all of them combined were barely enough to tip the scale.” He gazed at her earnestly. “I really am sorry about this, and I wouldn’t think of ever hurting you.”
“Just of destroying all my gellcaps and keeping me from making more.”
Van Hutten nodded. “I know there’s a good chance I’m wrong,” he admitted. “But the consequences if I’m right are too great. After we find out what the alien object is all about, this will be another data point, and I’ll have to perform another analysis.”
“And if the alien ship does veer off? Will this convince you that preventing Icarus from eating sociopathy-laced apples from the Tree of Knowledge was the right decision?”
“I don’t know. Let’s just see what happens. In the meanwhile, I’ll keep you in this cabin for a few days in as much comfort as I can while I try to figure out longer term accommodations. I know I’m the last person anyone from Icarus will suspect is involved in this. But David and Jim are very good, and I’m sure they’d find you here if we overstayed our welcome.”
“Any ideas about these longer term accommodations?”
“No good ones yet. But I’m working on it. I’ll try to find the most comfortable imprisonment possible while we wait for the alien ship to arrive.” He frowned. “I’m sure you’re uncomfortable, and I’m sorry about that. It doesn’t take much to get your friends on the core council to start talking about you. Your courage and resourcefulness are legendary, which is why that straightjacket is a precaution I felt I had to take.”
Kira sighed. “Look, Anton, you’ve made some compelling points here,” she acknowledged. “But all of it is conjecture. You of all people should know we can’t turn our backs on progress, regardless of the issues it might create. Industrialization led to a horrible air pollution problem in our major cities. But we found ways to clear up the air while keeping the rewards of industrialization. The progress of a species and a civilization aren’t linear.” She paused. “And what if you’re dead wrong. What if God not only applauds our attempts to improve ourselves, but helped me achieve my breakthrough? The fact that our brains are such that they allow for this kind of massive leap in intelligence is astonishing. The fact that I found a way to bring this out without killing myself, dodging countless landmines that I now know were there, is even more so. I see the hand of God in my therapy, not in an unknown alien object.”
Van Hutten nodded. “If not for the negative personality changes that come along for the ride, I would agree with you. What you’ve done is breathtaking.”
“What about this second level of enhancement?” pressed Kira. “It brings out your better nature rather than your worse.”
“Maybe. But you’re the only person alive who’s experienced it. Once. The negative personality changes didn’t hit me until the second or third enhancement. And we can’t corroborate your account. For all we know this level is pure, distilled evil, and your normal self has been deceived. Have you considered that?”
Kira frowned. No one on the team had ever questioned her account until just recently, when she and David had been forced to face this as a possibility, as painful as it was. But van Hutten had seized upon it immediately. His mind was every bit as impressive as they had hoped, misguided though he now was.
She locked onto the physicist’s eyes. “I can’t defeat your conjecture with debate,” she said. “But I know in my heart that you’ve got this all wrong. You’re making a terrible mistake.”