Whatever life form would dominate on this planet was thousands of years away from emerging. That didn’t keep Kai from wishful thinking and speculation. It would be nice to see the Ryxi superceded.
“Did you get some good tapes of them?” Kai asked Gaber as he reduced speed to cruising. No use wasting more power than necessary.
“Oh yes, indeed I did,” Gaber said, patting the recorder. “You know, Kai, I think they showed considerable intelligence.” He sounded astonished.
“We’ll get Varian to give an opinion. She’s the expert.” Kai turned the sled to the coordinates of the nearest echo-core. Varian might have some biological puzzles but he now had another geological one.
Despite what he’d said so nonchalantly to Gaber, the unexpected materialization of those cores unnerved him. Yes, this planet and the system had been in the computer bank, but surely there would have been some indication if it had been surveyed. A previous survey, however, would account for the lack of ore-deposit on these old mountains. The first party would have mined the shield area, and quite likely whatever other likely land mass, or seas, had been workable; land which had long since been rolled under in subsequent plate activity. Why, though, had there been no such notation in the computer banks?
To set them down, as on a totally unexplored planet, was unlike any previous knowledge Kai had of EEC. Gaber’s theory of planting the expedition returned to haunt his thoughts. EV had waited for their all-safe-down and conveniently disappeared in search of that storm. But there were the youngsters, more of an afterthought as members of the expedition than planned personnel. Above all else was the urgent need of the transuranics. Between the kids and the energy, Kai was certain he could discount Gaber’s gloomy presentiment.
Even with the ability to pinpoint the exact location of the faintly signalling core, it took Gaber and Kai some hard slogging through dense and dangerous sword plants and some heavy digging to pull it from its site.
“Why, why, it looks like the ones we have,” said Gaber in a surprise that was almost outraged.
“No,” said Kai, turning the device thoughtfully in his hand, “the case is fatter, the crystal dimmer and it feels old.”
“How can a core feel old? Why the casing isn’t so much as scratched, or dull!”
“Heft it yourself. It feels old,” said Kai with a touch of impatience and he was somewhat amused to see Gaber hesitantly examine the old core, and quickly hand it back.
“The Theks manufacture them, don’t they?” the cartographer said, giving Kai a sideways look.
“They have done but I think … Gaber, it won’t wash.”
“But don’t you see, Kai? The Theks know this planet has been surveyed. They’re back for some reason of their own. You know how they like to watchdog a likely colony …”
“Gaber!” Kai wanted to shake the older man, shake him out of his asinine and dangerous notion that the expedition had been planted. But, as he stared at the man’s eager, intense face, Kai realized how pathetic the cartographer was. Gaber must surely know this would be his last mission and was vainly hoping to extend it. “Gaber!” Kai gave the man a little shake, smiling kindly. “Now, I do appreciate your confiding your theory to me. You’ve done just as you should. And I appreciate the facts on which you base the notion but please don’t go telling anyone else. I’d hate giving the heavy-worlders any excuse to ridicule one of my team.”
“Ridicule?” Gaber was startled and indignant.
“I’m afraid so, Gaber. The purpose of this expedition was too clearly set out in the original programme. This is just an ordinary energy-resource expedition, with a bit of xenobiology thrown in as practice for Varian, and to keep the heavy-worlders fit and the youngsters occupied while the EV chases that cosmic storm. Just to reassure you, though, I’ll query EV about your theory in my next report. If, by any remote chance, you’re correct, they’d tell us. Now we’re down. In the meantime, I really do advise you to keep your notion between us, huh, Gaber? I value you as our cartographer too highly to want you mocked by the heavy-worlders.”