Killbird

abolished war, and such is our society that even individual killings are extremely rare. Would Eban's people bring back to our society, as the integration took place and they were advanced to our level of education and technology, the kill syndrome? Amb. John Zees: One question, please. I simply wonder if Eban's people have the intelligence to become part of our society. Prof. Gore: I call your attention to the extent of Eban's vocabulary. Of course, you have all read a translation, but I assure you, as somewhat of an expert on language, that his language is rich, varied and quite expressive. Much was retained—no technological words, of course—from the original language. The race also retained the art of counting, and Eban quickly learned numbers, simple arithmetic and even basic reading. Yes, I think he shows a basic intelligence and an ability to learn. Sec. Anne Barker: So the question is twofold. One, would it be best for Eban's people? Two, would contact be in the best interest of the U.P? Adm. Talltree: I remind myself that man has always felt lonely, has spent much of his energy and his resources in the search for other intelligent beings. Eban's people fit the description. Moil the Power Giver: Eban's people are fairly happy. They live well, by primitive standards. Given a choice, I'm not sure whether they would desert their way of life, their customs. But I think of the others, the ones Eban calls the inbreeders, living in the devastated areas, without Eban's gift of sensing deadly radiation. They could be helped. Degan the Far Seer: True. The lifespan of an inbreeder is about twenty-five old years. Only the fact that their reproduction systems seem to have been affected toward multiple births keeps their population static. Over half the births are malformed and are killed without question. There is widespread cancer. But with the residues of radiation firmly planted in their bodies, it would take generations to breed a clean form. Moil the Power Giver: One problem has been solved, probably without your knowledge, Degan. It is now possible to leach the long-lasting radioactives from bone marrow. Indeed, we dosed Eban's daughter, Margan, with the leaching agent while she was under hypno. It would take a massive effort, but many of the inbreeders could be saved, and a generation without radioactives would result. Capt. T. Willis: If we can do that I think we'd be less than human if we didn't help them. Sec. Anne Barker: Such a program would require a life-zone planet, massive removals, huge medical expenses. Should it be decided to move the population without their knowledge, under hypno, the expenses would be staggering. Moil the Power Giver: So we just forget them, let them continue to die of hunger, cancer, radiation sickness? Sec. Anne Barker: I have merely stated the facts. Adm. Talltree: There is one other aspect of the problem. If we should decide to do anything, what would be done with the «monsters» which Eban encountered in the east? We saw those beings. They're mutants. Once man. They're manlike, and they're horrible. Even more horrible in appearance than a Healer or a Far Seer. Prof. Gore: But are they human? Adm. Talltree: I was in the thoughts of one. Low level of intelligence, say like a domestic dog. But human in form. They know pain and hunger and lust. Prof. Gore: Nothing is ever simple. We have three phases of this problem: Eban's people, the inbreeders, the mutants. Sec. Anne Barker: I'm as human as anyone, but I don't see why we have to concern ourselves with the mutants. I'm sure we don't have some magic agent to leach them into being healthy human beings. Degan the Far Seer: I think I am ready to state my opinion. I would classify both Eban's people and the inbreeders as intelligent beings worthy of our help. I am not yet ready to state whether I advise open or covert contact, but I do advise you all that we have a responsibility, as fellow thinking beings with more advantages, to help the people of Tom Thumb. I would advise a further study on the scene, and a decision by a higher authority as to the direction and extent of our help, but it should certainly include medical attentions, however expensive. Prof. Gore: Any further discussion?… There being none, we will hear the opinions, one by one. Admiral Talltree: I endorse Degan's views. Moil the Power Giver: And I, with one request. I request that I be assigned to the study team. Capt. J. Willis: That Eban is quite a guy. Imagine a little runt like him going up against that thing which is translated as bear. That animal makes a Trajan bearcat look small, and he killed one with a spear. I don't think we could lose with people like Eban. I wouldn't mind having men like him in my crew, even if they are runts. I vote for study and help as quickly as possible. Amb. John Zees: While in general I am sympathetic to the view of Degan, I withhold my recommendation for the moment. Sec. Barker: I go along with further study, with a definite limit on spending, and only covert contact. Prof. Gore: Thank you, all of you. A copy of the minutes of this meeting and its recommendations will be forwarded by urgent blinkstat to U.P. headquarters, where final action will be decided upon. I, too, favor the views of Degan the Far Seer. There are many possibilities. The research activities on old earth have taught us much about cleaning up the lingering radiation of a nuclear war. Perhaps the U.P. Council might see fit to covertly lessen the radiation on Tom Thumb. I am not familiar with the costs of such an operation. Perhaps the population of the planet will be moved to another life-zone planet. But I am sure that something will be done. Any further discussion? Meeting adjourned. X&A Code Personal-Personal Blink Priority Urgent-Personal Origin: Tom Thumb, Lightning Sector To: Prof. A. Bradley Gore Dept. of Liberal Education Xanthos University Xanthos, Sector Home L-l From: Lt. Moil the Power Giver Knowing you, my dear and respected teacher, I'm sure that your curiosity is killing you, so I'm going to squander half a week's pay to bring you up to date on the story of Eban the Hunter. First, thank you for your help in having me assigned to the study team. We've been on Tom Thumb for three months now. The radiation from the last salvo has settled, and it's very clean here now, with only traces of bad stuff. We're camped on the hills overlooking Eban's valley. We had to disable some of his «dragons» to move about freely, and we operate, of course, behind a hypnoshield. These are fascinating little people. They're as brave as a Pharos lion. Eban killed a bear last week, but I'm getting ahead of my story. The dragons are interesting. They are all that remains of the vast and complicated technology of the old civilization. This planet must have been a very rich one, for the noncorrosive metals are used heavily, platinum and gold and silver. The heavy armor is an alloy of steel which is interesting. It shows signs of rust— that's Eban's blood—but does not rust away, like ordinary steel or iron. We dismantled one dragon and found the electronics to be unimpressive but efficient. There is heavy use of rather antique resistors and capacitors. (Yes, as you guessed, the dragon's guts were, indeed, color-coded electronic components.) After our study, we moved away from that dragon and left it, split open, for Eban's people to discover, and there was much happiness in the valley and now all of them wear necklaces of dragon's guts. The population is growing rapidly. The widows— and, old dear, you goofed on that word, for I suspect the proper translation is «widow'— have exercised their rights, and to their «walkers» have been added a new crop of babies. It keeps Eban and the other two hunters busy, for after the salvo, the «cave» closed itself down, blew itself up, and buried the entrance, leaving the family to their own provisions. But game is plentiful and the family lives well. The other half of the team, running tests in the low slopes, is having great success in leaching radioactives from the bone marrow of the inbreeders. An investigation of the «monsters» of the east reveals a new possibility—not man at all, but a mutated form of another and lower anthropoid. Their numbers are limited and their range is small, thus we are not faced with a large problem there. It was interesting to me to find that the western half of this landmass is totally devastated. Our archaeological teams are learning a little bit about the old civilization—very human, very tech, very deadly, very sick and now dead. A few art works have been recovered. They were very much like you Old Ones, but had a tendency toward, if you can believe the images, monstrous mammary glands in the female and bald heads in the men. I'm doing this deliberately, old dear, knowing that you're burning to know about Eban, but knowing also that you won't cheat and look ahead. Eban, poor thing, is sure that God brought another miracle, for in his mind just as he started away from the camp bound to search for Ouree, she came walking toward him, carrying her wings. There was, however, some confusion, and I have to report that our team goofed down here before. This year is known to Eban as the Year Which Lost Three Days, for that's how long we kept the family under hypnoprobe, and the time totem, whereon the Seer of Things Unseen strikes off the passing days, does not agree with Ouree's passage of time, for she was walking home during those three days. Moreover, Ouree arrived in the valley in time to see our scout lift off, and she told Eban that she saw God leave as she watched, and that God had been speaking to him. Thus, Eban is now considered a Holy Man, and, as he promised, went preaching peace to the surrounding families. As for Eban himself, although he still grieves for his Mar, he is a man, with man's needs, and he has taken as pairmate the daughter of the Seer, once known as Ouree the Unclaimed and now called Ouree the Flyer, for she loves to hang-glide. She and Eban often climb the hill and fly. Incidentally, we had to destroy a hunter-killer missile. All of them were not used up in the big battle of the salvo; at least one stray was left. We detected it coming, high, one day when the males of the family were soaring, and shot it down before they saw it. We made a probe of near space and found several dead satellites and a few hunter-killers which were malfunctioned and wiped them out, too. During his travels preaching peace, Eban recruited three young males, and they have now pairmated with three of the «widows.» The family prospers. The fame of Eban is spreading, and there have been two delegations from neighboring families come to hear his tales and to see the water-filled silos from which the killbirds flew. The futures of the children are assured, for alliances have been made. Margan is a lovely child and the leaching was successful. She has none of the «sickness» in her bones now and my only fear is that something went wrong in the process, for she shows signs of being near the size of an Old Onechild at her age, which makes her almost as big as her mother, or her stepmother, Ouree. Have