Clifford Simak - Project Pope

'So is mine, said Tennyson. 'Not the lap of luxury, but I can get along with it. One window gives a view of the mountains.

'There aren't any telephones, said Jill. 'I asked about it and was told there are no phones at all. A phone system has never been set up. There are electric lights, though, and I asked about that. I said how come electricity but no phones? No one seemed to know.

'Maybe no one ever felt the need of phones, said Tennyson.

'Pardon me, sir, said a voice. 'Pardon the intrusion, but it is important…

Tennyson looked up. A man was standing at his elbow. He was tall, somewhat beyond middle age, with a craggy face, smoothed-back hair, and a bristling, neat mustache that was turning gray.

'I understand, said the man, 'that you are a physician. At least, I am told you are.

'That's right, Tennyson replied. 'I am Jason Tennyson. The lady with me is Jill Roberts.

'My name, said the man, 'is Ecuyer. I'm from Vatican. Our physician was killed several days ago in a hunting accident.

'If there is some way in which I can be of service…

'You'll pardon me, ma'am, said Ecuyer. 'I dislike to interrupt your dinner and take away your partner. But we have a very ill woman. If you'd have a look at her…

'I have to get my bag, said Tennyson. 'It's in my room.

'I took the liberty, said the man from Vatican, 'of asking the manager to have it brought down for you. It will be waiting in the lobby.

The woman was old. Her face resembled a withered apple, the mouth pinched in, the puffy cheeks showing an unhealthy, hectic pink. The black button eyes stared at Tennyson with no sign that she had seen him. She struggled for breath. Beneath the sheet, the body was shrunken and stringy.

The gray-garbed nurse handed the chart to Tennyson.

'This woman is important to us, Doctor, said Ecuyer.

'How long has she been this way?

'Five days, said the nurse. 'Five days since…

'Anderson should not have gone on his hunting trip, said Ecuyer. 'He told me she'd be all right; rest was all she needed.

'Anderson is the man who was killed?

'He and the two others. They tried to talk him out of going. He was new here; he did not recognize the danger. I told you it was an Old One of the Woods, did I not?

'No, you didn't. What is an Old One?

'A huge carnivore. Bloodthirsty, ferocious. Attacks a man on sight. The other two went along in an effort to protect the doctor-

'The temperature has held for the last three days, said Tennyson to the nurse. 'Has there been no break?

'None at all, Doctor. Small fluctuations. Nothing that could be called significant.

'And the respiratory difficulty?

'It seems to be getting worse.

'The medication?

'It's all on the chart, Doctor.

'Yes, I see', said Tennyson.

He picked up the woman's scrawny wrist. The pulse was rapid and shallow. The stethoscope, when he held it against her chest, communicated the rasping of the lungs.

'Food? he asked. 'Has she taken nourishment?

'Only the IV the last two days. Before that a little milk and some broth.

Tennyson looked across the bed at Ecuyer.

'Well? asked the Vatican man.

'I 'think pneumonia, said Tennyson. 'Probably viral. Have you facilities for making tests?

'We have a laboratory, but no technician. He was with Anderson and Aldritt. 'All three were killed? 'That's right. All three. Perhaps you, Doctor… 'I do not have the expertise, said Tennyson. 'All I can do is treat the disease. You have medical and pharmaceutical supplies?

'Yes, a wide range of them. Ordinarily, we do not run so thin on medical staff. We did have two technicians, but one resigned several months ago. We've not been able to replace him. End of Nothing, Doctor, apparently is not the kind of place that attracts good people.

'My best diagnosis, said Tennyson, 'is some type of viral pneumonia. It would help to know the type, but without trained personnel, that's impossible. There are so many new viruses, picked up and transmitted from planet to planet, that it's hard to pinpoint one specific agent. Within the past year or two, however — or so I read in medical journals — a new broad-spectrum antiviral substance —

'You mean protein-X, said the nurse.

'Exactly. Do you have it?

'Some came in on the last trip Wayfarer made. The trip before this one.

'It could be effective, Tennyson said to Ecuyer. 'Not enough is known about it to be sure. The substance specifically attacks the protein coating of a virus, destroying the entire virus. We'd be taking a chance using it, of course, but we have nothing else.

'What you are saying, said Ecuyer, 'is that you cannot guarantee…

'No physician can make a guarantee.

'I don't know, said Ecuyer. 'Somehow or other, we must save her. If we don't use the protein…

'She still may live, said Tennyson. 'Her body will have to fight against the virus. We can give her some support. We can help her fight, but we can't do anything about the virus. She has to beat that herself.

'She's old, said the nurse. 'She hasn't much to fight with. 'Even with the protein, asked Ecuyer, 'we can't be sure? 'No, we can't, said Tennyson.

'About the protein agent? You want to think about it further? The decision is up to you. But I'd judge we haven't too much time. What is your recommendation, Doctor?

'As a physician, if the decision were mine alone, I would use the protein. It may not help. But so far as I know, it is the only thing with which to fight an unknown virus. I have to be honest with you. The protein could conceivably kill her. Even if it helped, it might not help enough. He moved to Ecuyer's side, laid a hand on his arm. 'This woman means a great deal to you?

'To all of us, said Ecuyer. 'To all of us. To Vatican.

'I wish I could help you more. I'm in no position to insist on anything. Is there something I can do or tell you that would help you in reaching a decision?

The woman on the bed moved, raising her head and shoulders from the pillow, fighting for a moment in an attempt to raise herself even further, then falling back again. Her face twisted and her lips moved. Words came from her. 'The towers, she cried. 'The great and shining staircase. The glory and the peace. And the angels flying…

The face untwisted, relaxing. The words shut off.

Tennyson looked at the nurse. She was staring at the woman as if hypnotized.

Ecuyer was pawing at Tennyson's shoulder. 'We use the protein, he said. 'We will use the protein.

The suite was large and well appointed. The living-area floor was covered by thick carpeting, the furniture stopped just this side of elegance; in a huge fireplace that took up half of one wall a fire burned. Off to one side was a dining area, doors opened into a kitchen and a bedroom; gilded mirrors and tasteful paintings hung upon the wall, intricate carvings of what appeared to be ivory were positioned on the mantel.

'Sit down and take it easy, Ecuyer said to Tennyson. 'Make yourself at home. I can guarantee that chair over there is comfortable. And what are you drinking?

'Would you have some Scotch?

'You have good taste, said Ecuyer. 'How did you run into Scotch? It's virtually unknown. Only a few old human hands…

'The captain on the ship, said Tennyson, 'introduced me to it. An Old Earth drink, he told me.

'Yes, the captain. He keeps us well supplied. Several cases every trip. We have a standing order from a planet called Sundance — a human planet, as you might guess. It is the only place within a thousand light-years that stocks it. The cases always seem to be a little short. The captain pilfers them. We make no comment on it. It is, we figure, a legitimate kickback.

Ecuyer brought the drinks, handed one to Tennyson and settled himself with the other.