Mack Reynolds - Brain World

Dorn Horsten and Boy found me—too late.”

“Who’s Boy?”

“The latest member of the Section G team.”

“Recruited a new potential agent, eh? Wizard. But what do you mean, too late?”

“They put me under Scop and dug the location of the Dawnworlds out of me.”

Sid Jakes hissed, his expression less happy now. “Holy Ultimate! But why’d they want it? As though I didn’t know.”

“They’re particularly interested in the prolongation of life. They wanted to get into UP so that Articles One and Two would apply to them and we wouldn’t be able to stand in the way. Sid, they’ll be heading for the Dawnworlds soonest, to get their business over before we can interfere.”

“Yeah.” Sid Jakes said, thinking about it. “It’d take a long time to get a Space Forces cruiser to you. Are there any spaceships available there?”

“There’re two space freighters on the field. They look like tramps.”

“Wizard. Hire one of them. Where would be a good planet to rendezvous with one of our cruisers? Some world partway there.”

“New Delos or Xanadu.”

“Just a minute.” Sid Jakes turned his head and said something into an order-box. In a short time he came back to Ronny and said, “We have a medium class space cruiser within two days of New Delos. Meet them there and they’ll take you to the Dawnworlds.”

Ronny said, “Just a minute, Sid. If I give the officers of that space cruiser the coordinates of the Dawnworlds, then they’ll know.”

“We’ll brainwash them later, like we did the men on the Pisa , who took you the first time.”

“Wizard, but that was a four man scout. You’re talking about a medium cruiser. And things worked out so that we could brainwash the Pisa crew. But suppose something falls apart on this expedition? The so-called Brahmins tolerated me on that first set-down on their planet, but they didn’t suggest that they wanted me back. Anything could happen.”

“I see what you mean,” Jakes chuckled. “All right, let’s do it this way. We’ll send Lee Chang in a small cruiser from here. She’ll get to New Delos as soon as you will. She’s a navigator. She’ll take over the navigating once you tell her where the Dawnworlds are, and the cruiser’s officers won’t know.”

Ronny said cautiously, “What happens to Lee Chang after the whole romp is over, assuming we pull it off satisfactorily? Then she’ll know where the Dawnworlds are.”

Sid Jakes grinned at him. “We’ll shoot her,” he said. “And maybe you too.”

Hiring the space freighter was no problem. As Ronny had suspected, one of them, the Space Freighter Cherokee , was a tramp and the skipper had no regular run. He would pick up a cargo on one planet, freight it to its destination and pick up a new load there for whatever spaceport it was designated for. He asked for an astronomical figure in interplanetary credits to take Ronny and Dorn to New Delos, his freighter going empty, since there was no cargo on Einstein for the world which had originally been settled by religious fanatics. Ronny shrugged that off. He was acting under orders. Let Sid Jakes worry about price.

However, the hop to New Delos was a lengthy one and the captain of the Cherokee found it necessary to take on additional fuel before getting under way.

The two Section G agents were climbing the walls with the need to get going, but there was nothing for it. The following morning was the soonest they could blast off. They returned to Rosemary’s house.

The balance of the committee had shown up but Rosemary herself had flown the coop, and no one knew where she had gone.

Ronny and Dorn had eyed Marvin and Barbara in disgust.

Ronny said, “After what Academician Felix Fitzjames told you about the dangers of the Deathworlds, you’re still foolish enough to make an attempt on them?”

Marvin said stubbornly, “We’re going to request that they release some of their technology to us, not try to seize it by force or steal it. We’ll offer to exchange some of ours for theirs.”

Ronny snorted and plunked down into a chair. “After a few megayears of their developing their science and technology, as compared to a couple of thousand years on the part of the human race, just what is it that you think that you’ve got that they’d want?”

Barbara said, “We don’t know. But we are sending four of the most intelligent persons on Einstein. It will be a matter of consulting with the Dawnmen. From what Academician Fitzjames said, there is no difficulty whatsoever in communicating with them.”

“No, there isn’t,” Ronny admitted. “They do it telepathically. Language makes no difference. But they do not like intruders.”

He turned to Fredric. “Isn’t there any possible way to stop them? Can’t you put it to a vote, or something?”

Marvin said, “It’s too late, anyway. They’re on their way, and in the speediest spacecraft on Einstein.” There was triumph in his voice.

“Holy Ultimate,” Dorn said in disgust. “And we’ve got to wait until morning even to start.” In the morning, Fredric came down to the spaceport to see them off. He had another Vizsla with him. A female.

Boy said to her, “Hi, Puppy.”

And she said scornfully, “The name is Plotz, as you very well know.”

The whole group was walking toward the Cherokee from where they had parked the overcar which had brought them to the spaceport.

“Plotz?” Ronny said to Fredric.

“I dabble in writing,” Fredric admitted ruefully. “What’s wrong with Plotz as a name for a writer’s dog? As she grows older, Plotz thickens.”

“Oh, no,” Dorn protested. “Don’t tell me that with all the upgrading of intelligence on the planet Einstein, you still have the pun.”

“She’s a beautiful dog,” Ronny made the mistake of saying, as they reached the space freighter’s gangplank.

“Thank you,” Plotz said, casting her eyes down demurely.

“She’s yours,” Fredric said immediately.

“Oh, now, see here… ”

“No, really. It’s better that you have a pair to take back with you to Earth. They breed true, you know. That is, the puppies, too, will talk and have superior intelligences.”

Boy let his tongue hang out from the side of his mouth and gave a double pant as he eyed Plotz.

“Huh,” she said.

Ronny looked at Fredric and said, “All right. Thanks. Earth will appreciate it. But listen, how do you people stand now on entry into United Planets? I know that Rosemary and her gang had ulterior motives for wishing to join, but how about the majority of you?”

“The majority of us still wish to join. Since we’ve found out about the presence of other intelligent life in the galaxy, we realize that man must stick together. It’s not a matter of upgrading a single world, such as Einstein; the job must be to upgrade the whole race. We are willing to contribute our efforts to the common cause.”

“Wizard,” Ronny said. “We’ll so report to our superiors. I don’t know how they’ll react, in view of this Dawnworlds foul-up, but I, personally, have no doubts about your own sincerity.”

Fredric shook hands with the two Section G agents and they ascended the gangplank, followed by the two dogs, Plotz going first, lady that she was.

As she climbed the stair, Boy gave her rear end a quick sniff and she looked over her shoulder at him and said nastily, “If you don’t look out you’re going to get a nip.”

“I didn’t do anything,” Boy said in defense, giving her a wag in reassurance.

Captain Joe Wald stood at the top of the gangplank awaiting his passengers. He looked down at the dogs for a long empty moment, then looked up accusingly at Ronny. “They talked,” he said.