The dato muttered to himself, as if in deep thought. “What if this starts the process snowballing again? What if we allow it to happen once more?”
Ramis decided to speak up. “Father?”
Magsaysay turned abruptly. “Ramis! I did not know you were here.”
Ramis pushed aside a strand of pliant wall-kelp and stepped forward. “What do you mean, starting the process snowballing again?”
Magsaysay looked out the observation window. He sounded afraid to turn around. “We are surviving, Ramis. Dr. Sandovaal projects that even with an increase in population, the Aguinaldo will manage. The Filipino people have succeeded and our culture will endure. With Luis’s wall-kelp, we have won, truly won, perhaps for the first time.”
“But Orbitech 1—”
Magsaysay looked back at Ramis and put a hand on his shoulder. “You are doing a brave thing, Ramis. If you are successful, Orbitech 1 will be able to pull through this crisis as well. With food, they have the resources to rebuild things. They have capabilities far beyond ours.” He tightened his grip.
“And that is what frightens me. How long will it take them to forget? How soon before we on the Aguinaldo go back to being their ‘little brown brothers,’ forever relying on the West? Even though we outnumber them twenty-five to one, it is hard for me to tear away from the past.
“For years we lived in the shadow of the Americans. We were content to let them keep their military bases on our soil, to respond to their whims. The Filipino culture nearly died out as we tried to imitate the United States. Even on the Aguinaldo, Tagalog is rarely spoken anymore. You know it because I have insisted you learn. The others know it, but we are enamored of English when we speak. Listen to me—even me.” He shook his head.
“Only when the Filipino people put their foot down did things change. When we declared war on Switzerland and forced the Swiss to open their financial records and divulge the whereabouts of our country’s lost fortunes, then the world took notice. Only after we kicked the Americans out and allowed the Soviets into our country did the United States take us seriously.” He swept his arms around. “And look what we got for it: this shining, expensive colony—a bribe, to allow the Americans to retain their status quo.”
Ramis could see tears of anger in the president’s large brown eyes. Magsaysay’s hand trembled, and he withdrew his grip. He flexed his fingers and looked at them wonderingly.
“This colony was to be our new beginning, our hope for a future that we could never realize on Earth. The War severed all ties, and now we have proved that we can overcome the obstacles from the past.” He shook his head.
“In some ways, it would be better if you did not go. I am very afraid of what the Orbitech people might eventually do if they survive. Already, their half-finished Orbitech 2 sits in our backyard here at L-4. What if they want more and more, as it always happens?” He stared at Ramis.
“What if I am to blame for all that happens, just by allowing you to go?” He was silent for a long time. He placed a hand on Ramis’s shoulder. “We have been keeping something from you—something you need to know before you get to Orbitech 1.” The dato seemed to have trouble continuing.
“Something terrible just happened on Orbitech 1—one hundred and fifty of their people have been killed, by decree of the director. And now, apparently, the director has been murdered as well.”
Ramis spoke without hesitating. “Was it rioting? What happened?”
Magsaysay squeezed Ramis’s shoulder. “They were apparently sacrificed to save the colony. A ten percent reduction of personnel to make the remaining supplies last longer. The associate director of the station has now taken over—Curtis Brahms. I know little about him. He has been there only a few months. Orbitechnologies seems to have thought highly of him.
“They are desperate, Ramis. They are starving. It is worse than we thought. You … you are stepping into something much deeper than we expected. If you want to change your mind and not go, no one will blame you.” His eyes searched Ramis’s.
Ramis was at a loss for words. “Surely you cannot let all those people starve—”
Magsaysay dropped his hands to his sides and took a deep breath. He forced a smile. “No, no—it is an old man’s nightmare. To do nothing would be unthinkable, both for them and for us. You must save Orbitech 1, Ramis. And I must pray my fears for you are false.”
Chapter 20
AGUINALDO—Day 18
When the time came to go, Ramis participated in the ceremonies with self-contained indignation. Solemnly, he attended a special Mass held for him and managed to recite Saint Christopher’s litany without stumbling.
Dobo Daeng helped him suit up as Magsaysay watched in silence. Ramis turned around to take a yearning look back at the Aguinaldo. Several adult Jumpers sped around the circumference of the cylinder or bounced across the Sibuyan Sea. Ramis realized he had never completed his nighttime Jump, and now he’d probably not have another chance. They will miss me, he thought, knowing it was true.
The great cylindrical core, with wall-kelp, dwellings, small buildings, and recreational areas wrapped around the axis, rotated on.
Ramis followed Dobo to the airlock. President Magsaysay held out a slender hand. “Your father and mother would be proud of you this day, Ramis. Our people are proud.”
Sandovaal scowled, fidgeting where he stood. “Hurry, boy. The creature is dying as you waste time.”
Ramis set his mouth. He knew if he spoke, tears would flow. And if that happened, they would not let him go—he is only a boy! they would say.
“If I am doing this, Dr. Sandovaal, you can please stop calling me a boy.” He lowered his gaze, mainly to keep Sandovaal from seeing the smug expression on his face.
Dobo gave the boy an unexpected hug. “May God be with you.” He crossed himself.
Turning, Ramis snapped his faceplate down so no one could see the tears in his eyes. He entered the airlock and stomped his boot on the floorplates, to feel solid ground beneath him perhaps for the last time.
A bioengineer met him as the airlock outgassed to the vacuum. Ramis pushed out from the airlock, and the spectacle of the unbounded universe took his breath away. The stars, black space, the rich river of the Milky Way pouring across the sky.
Moored to the Aguinaldo, Sarat’s bodily core ballooned in a fat cigar shape. Three space-suited figures worked at a cavity at one end of its body. Ramis felt nauseated. What have they done to you, Sarat? he thought. One of the space-suited figures motioned for him to hurry.
Approaching, Ramis saw wispy-thin sails, like gigantic butterfly wings, spreading out from Sarat’s body core. They were stretched farther than he could see, more fragile than anything seen on Earth.
He drew in a breath. The air echoed in the confined chamber of his helmet. The suit pressure made his movements stiff and difficult. The thin sail-membranes reflected little light toward him. But they haloed Sarat in a glorious majesty—a crown for the sacrifice the creature would make for the survival of Orbitech I.
A gloved hand touched his elbow, guiding him closer to Sarat’s main body. Ramis closed his eyes, not wanting to look. Through the careful application of irritant chemicals, the bioengineers had caused a cyst to form in Sarat’s expanding core—a cramped and hollow blister to house one small rider, some packages of wall-kelp, and three sail-creature embryos. The wall-kelp would grow inside the cyst, providing oxygen and food for Ramis to survive the journey.