Sergei Lukyanenko - The Genome

The passenger quarters were located on the lower deck. The only way to get to them was through the central hall, passing by the recreation lounge.

Alex led the way, clenching his fists so tightly that his knuckles whitened. Behind him came the laughing and bowing Zzygou. And finally, C-the-Third, a clone of the person named Danila Shustov. The recreation lounge was dead quiet—Janet had probably had a chance to mention something on her way to the sick bay.

They went down a narrow, winding staircase to the small circular hallway with six cabin doors facing it. The passenger quarters were double-occupancy cabins.

“We thank you, servant,” chirped the Zzygou.

For some reason, Alex was sure they’d take the same cabin, but they let go of each other’s hands and, with the same astonishing simultaneity of movement, went into two neighboring doors.

“Mr. C-the-Third Shustov…” said Alex.

“I’m listening, Captain.”

“Could you tell me what the Sky Company does, and what the purpose of our trip is?”

The clone showed absolutely no sign of surprise.

“The Sky Company specializes in galactic tourism. We organize cruises within the human space sectors for visitors of the other races, as well as”—for some reason, the clone’s voice quivered—“for human visitors to planets of other civilizations.”

“Our work will consist of transporting the Others?”

“Yes.”

Alex was silent a second before answering.

“Mr. C-the-Third Shustov, in that case, the crew must include a linguist, an exopsychologist, and a doctor specializing in the Others.”

“I am an expert in all these areas,” answered the imperturbable clone. “Captain, please tell me frankly—are you a xenophobe?”

“No.” Alex firmly shook his head. “I’ve even had a few acquaintances among the Others.”

“Then what is the problem? By the way, the term ‘Others’ is offensive. May I ask you to try to call our galactic neighbors ‘persons of another race’ or ‘persons of nonhuman descent’? Or, at the very least, the ‘other race,’ but never just ‘the Others’!”

It would probably have been best to tell him right then and there exactly what the situation was. Tell him about Janet, who was from Eben and whose specialization was executioner-spesh.

Except that the result would be the woman’s immediate dismissal.

“All right, I’ll use the term ‘the other race.’”

The clone fixed a probing stare on him. “Captain, this ship is made especially for cruises with life forms from other planets. Have you looked at the passenger quarters?”

“Not closely. Personal control of the cabins is not my responsibility.”

“If you had bothered to look, you wouldn’t be so surprised now. The passenger quarters are designed to accommodate any life form. Adjustable atmosphere and gravity, a wide range of temperature, programmable food synthesizers…”

“My mistake,” admitted Alex. “But… I’ve never heard of such cruise vessels before.”

“Well, now you have,” shrugged the clone. “How soon will you be ready for launch?”

“Any time.”

“I’m glad to hear that. We’d prefer to start in an hour, an hour and a half.”

Alex nodded.

“And the route?”

“The documents I gave you contain all the necessary information. The honorable Zzygou wish to see the famous waterfalls of Edem. We could, I suppose, make a stop or two on the way, say, at Zodiac. Have you ever seen the drift of the giant lotuses?”

“I haven’t…”

“Neither have I.” The clone smiled. “But it’s rumored to be a marvelous sight. Right now, it’s the beginning of the dry season on Zodiac. Has it occurred to you that working for this company gives you great advantages, Captain? You can travel to some of the most beautiful planets of the human sector, free of charge. Even get paid for it.”

“Yes, of course…” Alex licked his lips, suddenly remembering Generalov’s recent efforts to plot a course from Quicksilver Pit through Zodiac and Lard Crest to Edem.

“Would you mind just one more question, Mr. C-the-Third Shustov?”

“Please just call me C-the-Third.” The clone obviously had no inhibitions about his own origins. “Not at all, go ahead!”

“Why is there no odor?” Alex nodded towards the cabins taken up by the Zzygou.

“The Zzygou are a race of highly advanced biotechnology. They’ve found a way to block the release of merkaptane. It causes them some discomfort, but the Zzygou are willing to endure it for the sake of human comfort.”

“I see. In that case, perhaps you could also ask them not to call us ‘servants’? For the sake of the comfort of the crew.”

“All of us are masters and servants at different times in our lives,” remarked C-the-Third with a melancholy air. “Maybe when I take a cruise through their sector of space, I’ll get to call the Zzygou ‘servants’ as well. But of course, I’ll try to explain the situation to them.”

“Thanks.”

Alex had already braced himself to speak. Almost, but not quite.

“Is everything all right?” asked C-the-Third, looking closely at him.

“Yes, of course. We take off in fifty-six minutes. Agreed?”

The clone looked at his watch.

“Agreed, Captain. I will inform my wards.”

Alex left, without saying a single word about Janet or her problems with the Others.

Strangely, as he entered the recreation lounge, the discussion that had been raging there suddenly ceased. It didn’t look like they were just patiently waiting for him. More likely, they had been saying something unpleasant behind his back. Kim sat tense and annoyed, and Morrison looked uncomfortable, as if he had been forced to defend a position he didn’t exactly hold or argue for something he didn’t really believe.

“Attention, please,” said Alex. Reflected for a second and sat down. He still had some time left, after all.

“We are all ears, Captain,” said Generalov with emphatic courtesy. It was obvious who had initiated the heated discussion.

“Our passengers have arrived,” Alex continued. “As you already gathered, they are two visitors from the allied race of Zzygou and their guide, a specialist in communications with the Others, Danila C-the-Third Shustov. Apparently, we can all call him simply C-the-Third.”

“A clone?” asked Paul for some reason.

“Yes, Engineer. A clone. I hope no one here is a chauvinist? The Zzygou are an intelligent and peaceful race…”

“The hell they are! Who cares about the damn Zzygou, anyway!” Generalov’s politeness suddenly failed him. “Captain, you never warned us that there’d be a clone in the crew!”

“He is not in the crew,” Alex pointed out. “C-the-Third is a Sky Company employee, just like us. His task is to accompany the Zzygou and provide all the necessary services…”

“Sexual services,” sneered Generalov.

“I didn’t delve into the details.” Alex continued to speak with the same even tone of voice, but that seemed only to augment everyone’s annoyance. “Clones have the same rights as all the other citizens of the Empire.”

“You don’t get it, do you?!” Puck clasped his hands in anger. “Cloning is the way to human degeneration! These nasty clones are everywhere! Entertainment clones, government clones, and now, space clones!”

“Why should it bother you so much?” asked Alex. Generalov exhaled heavily. But he answered a bit more calmly:

“It doesn’t. I don’t intend to clone myself. But it’s totally unnatural! Human strength is in human diversity. Nature intended everyone’s genetic makeup to be unique, so cloning is immoral! Don’t you agree, Captain?”