Hands began waving again. And more questions were thrown toward Alex. “Is that the way it ended?”
“Didn’t they have a defense system against approaching objects?”
“He actually did this to protect ?”
Alex held up a hand. “That’s all we have,” he said. “It’s the way it ended.”
“Was all this information on the transmission?”
“No. There is another source, someone who visited the same world that Harding did.”
“Who’s that?”
“Sorry. That’s private information. It’s of no consequence to the investigation so it won’t be revealed.”
“Where is the alien civilization?”
“That’s also private.”
The place erupted. “So you’re saying Harding went crazy?”
“Have you confirmed the transmission is legitimate? Is it Charlotte’s voice?”
Alex had to fight to regain control. Finally: “Yes, it’s Charlotte.”
“Will you run the transmission for us?”
“At the end of the conference, yes.” He was about to continue when someone began sobbing.
“I’m sorry it’s so painful,” he said. “None of us were prepared for this. Even though we knew it couldn’t have a good ending.”
Olivia was seated on the far side of the auditorium. Somehow, in this most painful segment of the entire experience, she’d raised her head and was staring past the speakers’ platform. The tears and sadness were gone, replaced by a glow of unbroken pride.
Alex continued: “It would be helpful to keep in mind that all four of these people, Charlotte Hill, Del Housman, Rick Harding, and Archie Womack died doing what they thought was right. Rick felt an obligation to protect an entire world of terrified beings. He had to have believed he had no choice. He might also have suspected we would eventually secure the weaponry that had killed off that world’s population.
“The others would have believed that access to an advanced civilization should not be denied to us. That we couldn’t simply take a pass on it. Something else as welclass="underline" there are studies that reveal spending excessive amounts of time on a remote station, cut off from the rest of society, has a destabilizing effect on everyone. I suggest we cut Rick and the others a break. They all died trying to do what they believed in their hearts was right. They gave their lives for it.” He looked out across his audience. The media people were pointing cameras and raising hands. Others were in tears.
I wasn’t able to talk to Alex until we both got back to the country house. He looked thoroughly upset. “You okay?” I asked.
“Sure.” Then, after a long minute: “That was the most gut-wrenching experience of my life.”
I told him he couldn’t have done more. And Veronica called at the end of the school day. I wasn’t present for any of the conversation, but she showed up a half hour later. I was waiting at the door.
Alex needed her.
Chad did eventually accept a call. he said,
EPILOG
I wish I could report that Alex’s comments resulted in media coverage that showed a degree of empathy for Charlotte and her colleagues. I suppose there was no way that could have happened. But he did succeed in converting the episode into what sounded like a giant communication breakdown. Everett DeLani, the prominent psychologist, released a book a year later, , which explored the damage that could be rendered by extreme isolation, especially when one is faced with a difficult decision. DeLani supported the position that Alex had taken, that four decent human beings had been victimized by the fact they were all trying to live up to moral stands that allowed no compromise.
A week after the press conference Reggie Greene came by the country house to say thanks. “Some people still think I’m crazy,” he said, “but at least nobody’s accusing me of killing her anymore.” He looked in pain, though. “I miss her. After all this time, I still can’t get her behind me. Charlotte was an incredible woman. Always reaching out and trying to help. Which I guess is what got her killed.”
Rick’s sister informed us that, despite his brilliance, he’d always had a dark side, a tendency to see the worst in human beings. But she never would have believed he’d be involved in anything like what had happened to Octavia.
In the weeks and months that followed we heard from members of all four families. And others who had personal or professional connections. Almost everyone thanked Alex for his effort on their behalf.
A young woman from Claritz University on Dellaconda got in touch with us. She’d been a student in a physics class taught by Archie Womack. He was, she told us, one of the kindest, most sensible people she’d ever known.
Another woman claimed to have grown up with Harding. “I don’t understand it,” she said. “The Rick Harding I knew would never have hurt anyone.”
Word arrived yesterday that Gabe will be the recipient of the Otto Fleminger Award this year for his contributions to historical research. He’s pretending it’s not a big deal, but he’s already cleared space in his office for it. It will be atop one of the bookcases, just above the Winston Churchill volume.
(1440): I had not expected to publish this in my lifetime. But it has been almost five years since these events. During that time, the determined refusal by many of us to accept AIs as living beings has largely disappeared. In most human societies they can vote, can own property, and are endowed with the rights the rest of us have. The remaining worlds have all introduced legislation on the subject.
Consequently it no longer seems necessary to mislead anyone about the identity of the “terrified beings” Alex cited in his address at DPSAR. That’s fortunate because radio transmissions from Kaleska have leaked into the sky above the End Times Hotel. That led to the discovery of the Dyson Sphere. And, as I write this, a mission is on its way to find out what’s going on.
Recognizing what was about to happen, Gabe left for Kaleska two weeks ago with his new pilot to alert the AIs. It’s too soon to have heard back yet, but he was confident that Ark and Sayla, and the rest of their friends, would make the adjustment.
I hadn’t expected that a release of would ever be possible. Originally, I’d intended to use “Blame It on the Aliens” as the title. But Alex, who rarely comments on my memoirs, argued that the experience had been too dark to refer to it in such a comedic manner. He was right. As usual.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
JACK MCDEVITT is the Nebula Award–winning author of the Academy series and the Alex Benedict series. He went to La Salle University, then joined the navy, drove a cab, became an English teacher, took a customs inspector’s job on the northern border, and didn’t write another word for a quarter century. In 1971 he received a master’s degree in literature from Wesleyan University, and in 1980 he returned to writing when his wife, Maureen, encouraged him to try his hand at it again. Along with winning the Nebula Award in 2006, he has also been nominated for a Hugo Award, the Arthur C. Clarke Award, and the Philip K. Dick Award. In 2015 he was awarded the Robert A. Heinlein Award for lifetime achievement. He and his wife live near Brunswick, Georgia. You can visit him at