Lesbee hesitated before the fact of the other's inability. For the first time he questioned his impulse to share with Tellier.
He had been sitting on the edge of the control chair. The doubt brought him to his feet. He stood, eyes narrowed, considering what it was he had to say.
What remained to tell was fantastic but simple, unquestionably related to the basic structure of the universe – but explainable. When he had activated Dzing's self-destruct system, he had destroyed the robot. The evidence was the shattered wall and the indented ceiling and floor of the corridor where it had happened. But the Karn had been at the norm period when it happened.
Throughout, Dzing had operated and functioned outside the space-time limitations of the Hope of Man. The robot had been unaffected by four g's of acceleration. That could not be explained by energy flows. Even more important, the light weight of what was left of the robot body fitted what Browne had said about the nature of matter at light-speed. The Lorentz-Fitzgerald Contraction Theory applied in all its remarkable meaning.
And so he had – while Tellier slept – reached into his pocket and pressed a control button of the landing mechanism; and he had let its energy amplify his thought.
Instantly, he was in the norm state of the universe, at light-speed and beyond. He had set the time ratio at 973 to one, because of Hewitt's experience. Lesbee decided that the cells of a human body – perhaps of all bodies – had some natural balance at that ratio. He preferred not to go counter to such a native state of being without a lot of experimentation.
That first time, he had stared down at Tellier, eager to wake him up, and tell him the great discovery. Now, the excitement faded, he changed his mind.
He turned, and faced his friend, and said quietly, 'Armand, I can see I've given you as much new data as your brain should absorb at one time.'
Tellier did not reply. The high excitement of what he had seen and heard was fading from him. There was something in his friend's manner, a certain hardness, the presence of which had always surprised him. It surprised him again now. Suddenly, he saw that such a momentous discovery by a man who, despite his many likable qualities, was at heart a dictator... was not a good thing.
Lesbee was speaking once more, his voice friendly, his manner kind, as always. He said, 'I'll tell you the rest at some later time.'
But he never did.
36
A bright light gleamed in Gourdy's eyes. He stirred in his sleep, then awakened with a start.
His bedroom was brightly lighted. He blinked the brightness away and saw Hewitt and half a dozen men dressed in the uniforms of – Gourdy stared unbelieving. He recognized the gray-blue cloth from old films:
...Space Patrol...!
One of the uniformed men, a stern-faced older person, said in a deep baritone, 'Mr. Gourdy, you are under arrest and will be taken off this ship.'
Two of the uniformed men stepped forward and grabbed him, brought his wrists together. There was a gleam of metal, the cold feel of it on his skin. Handcuffs clicked with a steely sound.
Gourdy managed to sit up at this point. He was still struggling to shake off sleep. As he stared down at the gleaming metal things, he had the feeling that he was having a nightmare.
To one side, a uniformed man said to Marianne: 'You may accompany your husband to Earth, if you wish, Mrs. Gourdy.'
'No, no, no -' Her voice was high-pitched, unnatural. 'I'll stay right here -'
'That is your privilege, madame. It is Mr. Hewitt's decision that the voyage shall go on. You are one of the few aboard who may choose to stay or go.'
Strong hands were now pulling Gourdy to his feet. 'Come along!' somebody commanded.
He made his first real resistance. 'Hey!' he said. He tried to jerk away.
The stern-faced man made a gesture to the two men who Were holding him. Without a word, they picked him up and carried him out of the bedroom into the main room.
As Gourdy's glance flicked over the room, he saw that the three other women – Ruth, Ilsa, and Ann – were in their dressing gowns, huddled in the doorway of the second bedroom.
Even as he watched, a woman in the uniform of a Space Patrol officer went over to them, and said, 'Please get dressed, ladies!'
Ruth nodded and drew the other two gently back into the room, out of sight. The door closed.
Gourdy saw now that two uniformed men stood at the corridor door. They stepped aside. A few moments later, Harcourt, one other of his men, and four Space Patrolmen, entered. Gourdy's two henchmen were handcuffed to each other. They appeared bewildered and at first they did not seem to notice Gourdy.
The patrolmen held a low-voiced conversation with Hewitt, then they went out.
During the next hour, all eighteen of Gourdy's men were captured and brought to the captain's cabin. When they were all there in a sullen group, Hewitt motioned the patrol officers aside and addressed the prisoners.
'That photograph with the splotch of light on it was the key,' he began. 'It was not defective, a fact which I began to suspect right away. When I looked at the enlargement as it was projected onto a screen by Astronomer Josephs, it occurred to me that I was looking at a section of my own salvage ship, the Molly D.
'And when I opened the airlock and went through, there it was, big as life.'
He continued: 'The scientific reason for such a dual space-time condition is not yet known. But there are several unique features in this situation.
For example, when I looked out from the bridge of the Hope of Man yesterday, the solar system was many, many quadrillions of miles away. Yet from a porthole of the Molly D, I saw that in some time fashion, it is well inside the solar system. In fact, I could see Earth, and it seemed to be going along normally.
'We may surmise that some of the beings you saw out in space have solved these space-time confusions, and obviously the Hope of Man must remain in space until the problem is solved for the human race also. To help us solve this problem, several leading scientists, have volunteered to come aboard. We shall also have a full complement of other scholars and experts and, of course, a Space-Patrol unit to keep order. Some of these men will bring their families. Others are single.
'As soon as they are aboard, the Molly D will cast off, and we shall be alone again. As for you men -'
He paused to make sure that he had their full attention, then continued:
'As far as I know, no one will be charged with unlawful acts. The history of the ship is regarded as a sociological and not a criminal phenomenon. But we don't want you on the ship.'
Hewitt turned to the patrol chief, said quietly, 'I think that about does it.'
When Gourdy and his cronies had been herded out of the apartment, Hewitt confronted the women who were now fully dressed.
'Be calm,' he said. 'Everything will be all right. Why don't you have breakfast? I have many things to do.'
He went out without explaining further. He anticipated that the women would have a problem adjusting. But, then, many others would have the same problem.
Law and order were about to come aboard the Hope of Man.
Hewitt remained away from the captain's cabin during the entire transformation period that followed... On the eighth day, a patrol craft arrived with the first of the new passengers.
Among the arrivals was the redoubtable Peter Linden. 'Young man,' he said to Hewitt, with eyes that twinkled, though his face was serious, 'the unsuspected existence of so many unusual space-time conditions finally made me take a look at the mathematics of John Lesbee I. I have accordingly advised the government of the Combined Western Powers that his theory and proof have shaken my confidence and that I believe that something will happen, that the sun may indeed take on – what is the famous phrase that was so often ridiculed? – "some of the aspects of a Cepheid Variable." We'd better figure out something to do about that.'