“So that’s how he got himself appointed to this mission,” Major Reagan reflected.
“Well, I wouldn’t know anything about that because I was under the Nevada desert with the rest of you when that came about. I can tell you though that he has been with Army intelligence in all its various forms over a number of generations. For any details you’ll need to speak to him.”
Major Reagan wasn’t one to wear his emotions on his sleeve but Julie could tell that this disturbed him.
Wanting to continue the line of thought Julie asked, “How did you get assigned to the Earth Team Toni?”
“I happened to be in the right position academically; my degree and credentials are real you know,” she said with a smile. “And when the opportunity came I jumped on it. I suspect that one of us was in a position to influence the selections somewhat but I have no idea who that would be.”
The Major was obviously having trouble with that last statement. “Toni, you can’t claim to be loyal to our mission while still trying to protect other Coridian operatives,” he said.
“Coridian operatives,” she repeated. “I think Captain Silva would like that term but I’m not sure it’s really appropriate. What you were told about galactic society being nonhierarchical on anything but a societal level is largely true.
“We didn’t put together a team with leaders and subordinates like you did Major. When we decided to visit Earth likeminded people came together and discussed the idea. We approached some others that had expertise we thought we’d need but in the end each of us came here because we wanted to. We told you that our Head of Mission was still in France and that is true, but not because she has any titles or authority other than that we all respect her and tend to listen to her.
“I didn’t create an academic career in genetics because someone told me to; I did it because I thought it might be the best thing for us collectively. Whoever recommended me for this mission didn’t come to me first and create a plan; they did it because they thought it might be a good option. I had no idea Captain Silva was going to be a part of this until I saw him on the base. I know this way of thinking is foreign to you but it is the way of things.”
Julie could see the Major was thinking things through carefully. After a moment his body language suggested he had made a decision; he leaned forward and said, “Toni why are Coridia and Noridia at odds and why does the Coridian Dynasty care what Noridia does to us?”
Now it was Toni’s turn to pause. With a sad look in her eyes she said, “The Noridian Dynasty becoming a Lower House would be a disaster for Coridians. Lower House members are treated with a respect among planet bound populations and spacefaring dynasties that is on the same level as a minor deity. If Noridia became a Lower House all they would have to do would be to mention in passing their dislike for us and we would be shunned by entire star systems. In your terms it could impoverish us. Our loss of respect galaxy wide is something we might never recover from.
“As to why we don’t like each other, I’m going to defer to Captain Silva on that. Actually I suspect he will also ask you to wait but just a few hours. I think I know where he’s taking us and if I’m right the Coridian you will meet there will be able to answer all your questions.”
Chapter 29
Dr. Mark Spencer
Toni was a Coridian! Dr. Mom! Man, I didn’t see that one coming and she didn’t look or act anything like Jaki or the others. For one thing she was a happy person; Jaki always looked way too serious even when she… well. Also, Toni’s body fat was much higher. I wonder if that was just part of the disguise. Come to think of it, didn’t we learn that their medical nanotech kept them healthy and lean? I’ll bet she hasn’t had access to that for a while. Interesting.
Silva was a different story though. Now that I knew he wasn’t from here it was hard to see him as anything but an alien. He still seemed more masculine than the male Noridians I’d met but not by much.
I approached the small group that included Captain Silva and had been waiting for us in the hub. Without explanation I informed them that Major Reagan was delayed and that we should continue.
Dr. Decker and Captain Silva were already in a deep conversation regarding molecular manipulation so I let them continue while I settled back in my sofa chair and reviewed my strategy. I already had a general outline of questioning I wanted to pursue but determining which line of questions would bring the fastest insights was a throw of the dice.
Most of the larger questions still remained unanswerable. Silva had told us that the Coridians hoped to openly influence our course of action from this point on but did they just want us to join the Coridian Dynasty rather than the Noridian Dynasty? What Earth really needed was the opportunity to make our own way in the universe. We didn’t need to be owned or absorbed by anyone but could we stand up to the Dynasties if it came to open conflict?
If we were to believe the Coridian’s story—and I was inclined to—then Noridians had already demonstrated their willingness to covertly murder our people. Would it be possible to play them off each other? Were there other Dynasties or parties that might affect the dynamics? How much time did Earth have before events came to a head?
Then of course there were going to be factions on Earth made up of people like Helmer and Memphis that would sell the idea of greater technology and greater comfort at any price. Conflict and restraint on our part was a hard sell compared to an increased standard of living for all, peaceful integration, and no more worries. I could almost convince even myself with an argument like that except we would lose our freedom; we would lose our ability to ever stand on our own or be considered an equal in galactic society. It was scary to think that the majority of people on Earth might not really care about that. What was it that Anzio had said? Someone had to represent the higher thinkers?
Maybe this is what history has always boiled down to; when leaders or small groups of leaders have been put into a position to make history making decisions they did it. They didn’t take a vote, they didn’t try to guess what the majority would want; they pushed for what they believed would be best. Sometimes that belief was self-serving or insane but on occasion you had true statesmen that propelled the course of civilization forward. Gandhi didn’t seek the approval of the British. Churchill didn’t apologize for standing up to the Nazis even when it frightened his own countrymen. The Spartan king Leonidas didn’t bow to the Persians and broke his people’s most sacred rituals in doing so. The Founding Fathers of the United States neither sought nor had the approval of most of the people in the colonies.
Plato wrote that a true democracy would never work. That if each person truly had a vote on every issue then as soon as the majority realized they could vote themselves largess from the public trough, disproportionally benefiting from the efforts of the minority, then that civilization was doomed.
I was under no illusion that I had all the answers. Right now I’d settle for just a few. Major Reagan however had asked me to figure something out and he just wasn’t a man I wanted to disappoint. I also knew that Julie and Anzio were depending on me but what could I do?
By 0640 the next morning we were all in Major Reagan’s quarters; apparently no one else had been able to sleep either.
I was the second to arrive and was a little surprised to find Julie already there, sharing coffee and in deep conversation with the major. I don’t know why I was startled but when Julie turned to me and gave me that great smile of hers I got a warm feeling inside and went to join them.