General points:  12   A First Touch   The long years of preparation were about to reach their climax. Now that her hour was close at hand the tension seized Chattaka's troubled heart and threatened to overwhelm her. She wanted to run and hide, to ignore her terrible knowledge and live out her life without conflict. After all it would be comfortable enough. It would be many thousands of years yet before the evil ones were capable of forcing her children into submission. Why provoke a conflict that might well destroy her long before necessary? Alternatively why act now? Why not wait, enjoy her children while she could and confront the evil ones later, much, much later? Yet even as these voices sought to dissuade her from her intended course she knew in her heart that it could not be so. There could be no possible contentment while the future held only darkness, no matter how far away that might be. A dark future meant a tortured present; her only course was confrontation. She must somehow track down, expose, understand, and finally destroy the inexhaustible driving force that terrified her. Her early aspirations had not worked out as she had hoped. Although she struggled unceasingly to understand all she could of the evil ones so as to thwart their ambitions, the key that would unlock the mystery remained elusive. What was it that fuelled the all-consuming fire that drove them on so fiercely? What evolutionary process could bring into existence a species whose appetite was so far in excess of every possible need, and at the same time create a level of ingenuity that served that appetite so well? Her nightmare was embodied in just two unfathomable but perfectly matched characteristics: their relentless drive towards total domination of everything they could use or exploit, and their irrepressible resourcefulness that would deliver precisely that end. They had no conception of contentment. They had no conception of sufficiency. Always they wanted more. They wanted it all. How could she gain access to their deepest motivations? How could she neutralise their ambitions? She had to tread so carefully, to engage their curiosity and assuage their fears. They had already taken action against her, but she knew that in carrying out that action she herself had not been the target. It was nothing compared to the action they would take if they knew, or even suspected, however vaguely, the course to which she had committed herself.  *************** Damian Knight eyed his companion critically. Cyrus Sharma was not the person he would have chosen to lead this survey. He knew from his biography that he was competent, experienced, observant, capable of prolonged concentration, and that he always stayed calm even under extreme stress. Yet there was something lacking in him. It was difficult to define precisely, a sense of adventure or curiosity perhaps. He had accepted the assignment with as much enthusiasm as if he had been asked to ferry someone to one of the orbiting factories. Knight was determined not to allow his own flair for exploration to be dulled by anything. To be chosen for this mission logged simply as Special Operation 1307 was the most exciting thing that he could ever have imagined. It was incomprehensible that Sharma could be so unmoved by it. The pair of them had been on standby for twelve days. At first they were scheduled to make a close flyby of the vessel but when it became clear that the aliens would enter earth orbit the departure time and flight plan had been rearranged. Continuous updating was still in progress but it was now fairly well established that takeoff would be in three days, unless anything changed in the meantime. Knight was very lucky to have been chosen and he was fully aware of the fact, but nevertheless he considered that the privilege had been earned. He had graduated from Auckland Institute of Astronautics with distinctions in every subject, and had demonstrated his ability in many highly significant missions in the seven years since then. Lucky, yes; but deserved, certainly. Time and again the reconnaissance probe recordings were played until both Sharma and Knight knew the strange craft better than any other living person. Even so, their knowledge was still very limited. All the spheres were identical, linked symmetrically by the latticework of tubes. Examinations had been made from every angle and were still progressing, but by now no-one expected any surprises. Even where the spheres had been destroyed there was nothing to be seen, just an irregularity in the otherwise perfect geometrical structure. The most unusual feature was the drive mechanism. High velocity ionised particles materialised apparently from nowhere. Their source was some six kilometres from the vessel out in space. But there was nothing there at all to produce them, nothing that could be detected except for the stream of particles themselves. How they got there in the first place, how they acquired their energies, and how the forces were transmitted back to the vessel were all mysteries. Six probes were now accompanying the vessel, weaving in and out of the giant structure like tiny fishes in a coral reef, watching, measuring and recording every part in great detail. Nowhere was there any sign of an entry point, of any windows, or of anything in fact other than spheres and links. And if the visitors were aware of the tiny inquisitive craft then they did nothing to show it. People were beginning to suspect that the whole thing was working automatically without any living being on board at all. Certainly the continuous transmissions of music, the predictable course adjustments, and the way all attempts to communicate were ignored did nothing to dispel that suspicion. Knight watched his companion as he studied the activity programme. By the time they were ready for takeoff he would practically know the thing by heart. Knight and Sharma had been consulted on the major elements of the mission, but a team of WSA scientists, engineers and tacticians had carefully compiled all the details, which gave instructions for every part of their investigation together with detailed contingency plans for unusual developments. In hard print it would have run to several thousand pages. Knight considered it impossible to digest in detail. He understood the essentials well enough, the major tasks to be carried out and policies to be adopted. In any case it was intended for the ship's computer, which would relay the instructions at each stage. Sharma explained that he wanted to discern the spirit of the contingency plans so that he could stay 'in tune' with it if something occurred outside its scope. He didn't seem to realise that even if the programme's scope was exceeded the backup team would be ready with further advice instantly available to cover any possibility. Knight felt it better to humour him though; he had already found that argument was useless. It led quickly to one of those most infuriating of put-downs like 'when you've been in the business as long as I have you'll know why', or something similar accompanied by a patronising smile. Three days and eight hours later most of Knight's brash confidence had evaporated. "Nervous?" asked Sharma as they waited for takeoff. "A little," admitted Knight. The pre-flight checks and routine activities had helped to take his mind off the mission, but now there was nothing to do but wait. And this was the worst part. He had not been this nervous since his very first expedition to Triton, but then there had been very little sense of mystery or unknown danger. This mission was totally different to anything that anyone had ever attempted before. The probes had reported all they could but their main purpose was defensive, their powers of investigation were limited. What they had shown did nothing to lessen Knight's fears. The sheer size of the vessel was enough to overwhelm anyone. But the mystery of the aliens themselves, their power, their intentions, their lack of response to any signals, and perhaps most disturbing of all their unknown reaction to the damage that humanity had done them and their craft, all conspired to create an acute desire to turn and run. Now that takeoff was imminent Knight found Sharma's lack of emotion reassuring. A man who lacked excitement perhaps also lacked fear; perhaps he would not prove too bad a companion after all. Sharma leaned over and put a hand on Knight's arm. "Just take it one step at a time," he advised, "don't go crossing bridges before they appear. Force yourself to think about each task as it comes up, that way your imagination will be kept in check." "Yes, thanks. Don't worry, I'll be all right," he replied, his voice conveying less confidence than his words. In less than forty minutes their little craft had reached the prescribed orbit and their target was straight ahead about eighty kilometres away. Even at that distance it presented a formidable sight. The spheres were separated enough to count easily, and the whole structure matched about the size of an orange at arm's length. The vessel had been in stable earth orbit for almost thirty-six hours. It was about two thousand kilometres up and circling the earth every two hours or so. A new craze had rapidly swept across the world - 'Starship Gazing'. Viewed from the ground when directly overhead it appeared about a quarter of the area of the full moon, and with good eyesight a person could just discern that it consisted of separate spheres. It presented a most compelling spectacle. Wherever and whenever it was visible people stood about in undisguised wonder. Knight had been no exception. He was now finding that the closer he approached the stronger grew the mysterious compulsion. He could not take his eyes from it. Someone now forgotten had named it Pleiades because of its star-cluster appearance and the name had quickly become universally accepted. As he watched Knight felt that Pleiades was much more than a machine, she was an awesome and commanding presence. His trance was rudely interrupted by Sharma's down-to-earth voice. "Time to get busy." He was right. There was a lot to do. It was Knight's job to gather as much information about the vessel as possible while Sharma made the carefully planned manual approach. Knight was soon back to normal again, busying himself at the instrument panel and setting up the recording equipment. The otherwise ordinary ferry had been fitted out with a great deal of special equipment and instrumentation for this survey flight, and both Knight and Sharma had spent a lot of time familiarising themselves with its use. High sensitivity radiation monitors were energised, electric, magnetic and gravitational field detectors were deployed, and wideband radar interrogators began their probe of the surface material. A nagging worry was the drive system. There had been no course alterations since the orbit had stabilised so it was unlikely that further manoeuvres would be made now. Even so it would be a relief when they were past the region known as the jet screen. There was no way of knowing how extensive the screen was but for pessimism it was assumed to cover the entire vessel and to have jets capable of activation over any area. Detailed observation of the screen region was an important task but a thorough investigation revealed nothing at all. Either the screen materialised when and where needed or it was absent at their point of entry. There appeared to be no obvious danger in a close approach so Knight began the preparations for Phase Two of the operation - the detailed physical examination of the superstructure. Fifteen minutes later and his immediate tasks complete Knight pulled himself back along the guard-rail to the flight deck to rejoin Sharma. Before he could utter a word the appearance of the immense and beautiful vessel took his breath away. They were stationary about two hundred metres from one of the outer spheres, or so the deck radar told him, it was impossible to judge distance or size with the naked eye when confronted with such an unfamiliar object as this. Below the sphere was like a miniature planet. There was no break, crease, ripple, or any blemish to be seen in that perfectly reflecting surface. The whole structure presented an eerie sight, it could not be seen at all but for the reflection of the earth, the ferry and the sun, it was giving nothing at all away of its true nature. The links bridged the gaps to all the other spheres, vanishing into the distance in a seemingly infinite array, the whole forming a sculpture of geometric perfection. The pictures received from the probes could never have conveyed the impact of witnessing such majesty at first hand. "Big, isn't she?" remarked Sharma with a smile. "She's beautiful," replied Knight, almost reverently. "All right for Phase Two then?" asked Sharma, getting down to business. "Ah, oh yes," answered Knight, forced back to reality, "there's no harmful radiation, the surface temperature isn't measurable by radiation detection, there's no measurable static charge and no vibration." "Right," said Sharma as he unclipped his seat harness and propelled himself towards the rear cabin. Knight admired his graceful movements, he was as at home in zero gee as on earth. Knight had mastered the essential skills well enough but lacked the polish that only space veterans exhibited. Sharma stopped and looked back. "The ship's on autostat," he said, a piece of space jargon meaning that the short-range radar and propulsion system were working together to maintain a fixed position relative to the vessel below. "If anything crops up don't be a hero, just do as the plan tells you, OK?" Sharma was deadly serious. "OK," agreed Knight. He had been in the business long enough to know that hard logic ruled in space. There was no place for heroism, at least not unless the situation demanded it, and then there was no place for anything else. Knight made the formal request for permission to embark upon Phase Two of the plan. Earth was monitoring everything that happened on board of course, but these formal checks were part of a well-proven safety procedure. Permission was granted. Sharma reappeared a few minutes later and Knight inspected his suit, helmet and equipment. When all was checked Sharma made his way to the lower deck to begin the departure routine. Knight watched his colleague on the monitor as he carefully manoeuvred himself out of the airlock, secured an external long range cable to his suit and unclipped the internal safety cable. Checks were made at each stage until both men and the ship's computer were satisfied that nothing had been overlooked. Then Knight returned to his position at the controls and watched Sharma descend to the shining sphere below. The restraining cable glinted now and then in the sunlight, an effect that was strongly reminiscent of a spider dropping slowly from a thin strand of web. Although it looked very fragile it could stand many times a man's weight. If any difficulty was encountered the ferry could leave at full thrust and snatch Sharma away like a fish on a line. In addition to the restraining function the cable also served as a multi-channel communication link. It was connected to the ship's computer and gave detailed information on Sharma's physiological state as well as providing the usual audio, visual and instrumentation signals. Sharma became smaller and smaller, and as he did so Knight was fascinated to watch the sphere below as it seemed to grow and grow. Sharma was the only valid external reference point so the brain automatically adjusted its impression of sphere size as its reference shrank. "Fifty metres," called Knight as he checked the display. "No change, proceeding normally," replied Sharma calmly. He was quite small now and Knight had to use an enlarged monitor image to see him in any detail. "Ten metres." "No change, proceeding normally." "Three metres, locking the cable." This was judged a safe enough distance to prevent Sharma inadvertently touching the surface. His expertise with the personal manoeuvring jets was admirable, but he could not rely on them as he performed the necessary delicate experiments. Knight marvelled at the workmanlike approach of his companion. He was supremely able to suppress his emotions, to the extent that he appeared to be completely oblivious to the danger all around him. He was evidently able to take his own advice and cross his bridges just one at a time. "Cable locked," confirmed Knight. "Still no change, proceeding with observational test one." Then, after a pause, "No, nothing, even on five hundred times magnification the surface is still perfectly continuous. Proceeding to observational test two." The tests continued without any further information coming to light. The surface was perfectly smooth, continuous, and reflecting over all parts of the spectrum capable of checking. There was no measurable charge and no detectable magnetic field. About an hour had passed and only one event had broken the monotony. Knight had looked away from the telescope briefly to see something emerging from behind on of the more distant spheres. For a moment he froze and his heart almost stopped. But before he regained sufficient composure to shout out he realised that it was only one of the probes. He felt quite foolish but was thankful that he hadn't raised the alarm. He would have been ribbed about it forever afterwards. Watching it manoeuvre round silently he found it strangely reassuring. It was comforting to see something external that was man-made, like seeing an old friend in a strange country. "Observational tests complete. Request permission to begin the physical test sequence," said Sharma. "Acknowledged," replied Knight. "Permission granted, proceed when ready," answered the mission director's voice from the WSA control centre. Sharma extended a telescopic metal rod and plugged an extending connector into one end. This was able to detect extremely faint vibrations and give an indication of surface hardness. Gingerly he poked it towards the sphere, then, involuntarily, let out a sharp "Oh." At first Knight thought Sharma had received an electric shock, but the instruments were easily sensitive enough to indicate any significant electric charge, so it must have been something else. "It's soft," exclaimed Sharma, his voice indicating the level of shock that he felt. "It's like a balloon skin," and then "Oh God!" this time louder, "it's gone through, the rod has gone through." Knight suddenly had a vision of an enormous balloon being popped, ripping from end to end as the gas escaped from inside. "There's no leakage from the surface," Sharma reported tensely. "The skin seems to have closed around the rod." He had had the same thought. "What do I do now?" he asked. "Withdraw it or leave it in? Perhaps it's helping to maintain the seal?" His earlier calmness had now deserted him. The anxiety in his voice betrayed how shaken he was by his discovery, but he was still a long way from panic. Already the workplan's contingency arrangements had been exceeded. This was an eventuality that had not been foreseen. The experts on earth considered the problem while Sharma waited, wondering if the occupants could see the other end of the rod, and whether any action was being taken. "Disconnect the extensible lead," said a voice from the control centre, "and gently release the rod. If it stays in, leave it. If it moves out itself hold it and withdraw it very slowly. If it falls further then again, withdraw slowly." Sharma carefully followed the instructions until he was holding the rod between the forefinger and thumb of his gloved hand. Slowly and shakily he released his hold, ready to grasp it again quickly if it moved. The rod began to fall further so he clasped it and gently withdrew as instructed. Gradually the end came free and was pulled with great care from the surface. Sharma held the rod and after a pause exhaled with relief. There was no escape of gas or other fluid, the surface closed as if it had never been parted. There was no need for more instructions, Sharma closely examined the area where the rod had entered and concluded that the closure was perfect. "Unlock the cable Damian," Sharma demanded with uncharacteristic impulsiveness, "I'm going closer to investigate," adding, "if the director agrees," as an afterthought. Control agreed but reminded him to make a thorough chemical analysis of the surface material to check for potential corrosiveness before risking a touch with his glove. Knight released the lock and gave Sharma the 'all clear' to proceed. Very carefully he inched his body forwards, keeping his legs well clear and leading with his hands. "Proceeding normally, one and a half metres to go... one metre..." Suddenly he let out a startled cry and disappeared headlong into the sphere. Knight was taken so completely by surprise that he was momentarily paralysed. It seemed an age before his sluggish body obeyed his desperate command to lock the cable, but at last he managed to thrust himself towards the controls. He leapt with such force that he bruised his head and left shoulder on a bulkhead but he had succeeded, the cable was firmly locked. Fighting a rising sense of panic he quickly manoeuvred himself into the pilot's seat and set the controls for emergency lift in order to get Sharma out as rapidly as possible. Soon the ferry was under way and with immense relief he saw Sharma swinging wildly at the end of the safety cable. Quickly he instructed the computer to reel in the cable, and then transferred ship control to the computer. He had to brace himself firmly as it performed the hair-raising feat of stabilising the vessel's motion while at the same time safeguarding Sharma who was extremely vulnerable at the end of his cable. It was a task that Knight could not have handled manually but fortunately the computer was more than equal to the challenge. As soon as Sharma was firmly held against the hull Knight clambered into his suit and with only the most cursory safety checks rushed out of the airlock to grab him and guide him back into the ferry. He hurried through the entry routine and soon they were both safely back inside and out of their suits. Sharma was predictably in an acute state of shock. Knight gave him a thorough examination and suitable medication under the direction of a WSA doctor, and to the great relief of all found that he was unhurt. Firmly strapped into a seat Sharma sat motionless as Knight gently returned the ferry to its former position and studied the sphere for any sign of a reaction to what had happened. There was none. The silver surface had resumed its former untouched appearance; there had been no visible change at all. Knight and the WSA team waited patiently for Sharma to describe what had happened. No-one wished to hurry him, but the suspense was acute. Slowly he began to speak, somewhat incoherently at first, but then with more clarity as one by one he recalled the sequence of events. Â