18_the_end_of_the_circle-第40部分

快捷操作: 按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页 按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页 按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部! 如果本书没有阅读完，想下次继续接着阅读，可使用上方 "收藏到我的浏览器" 功能 和 "加入书签" 功能！



It　hurt　to　look　at　the　painful　parts　of　Lynn…Kyle's　life；　but　she　also　saw　the　fine　parts；　the　heroic　and　idealistic　side。　She　saw　again　that　he　had　died　trying　to　save　her　and　end　the　war；　the　love　for　him　that　she　had　suppressed　was　free　to　find　its　rightful　place　in　her　now；　with　no　power　to　do　her　harm。

She　renewed　her　affection　for　Janice　Em。　Android　or　no；　Lang…agent　or　no；　Jan　had　perhaps　been　her　truest　friend　and　best　song…soulmate。

Looking　in　on　the　SDF…3；　Haydon　found　what　he　had　been　searching　for。


Minmei　had　no　idea　how　long　she　had　been　watching　the　flow　of　scenes　when　another　voice　reached　her；　and　somehow　she　knew　it　was　not　a　part　of　her　Intersection…generated　views　of　time。　It　was　Rem。

She　turned；　somehow　breaking　the　trance；　to　see　that　he　was　being　swallowed　up　in　white　translucent　banners　of　force。　She　tried　to　move；　rooted　to　the　spot。　〃No！〃　He　began　to　fade　from　her　sight。

She　cried　the　word　like　a　plaintive　song…〃No…ooo！…and　somehow　its　power；　the　power　her　voice　had　always　had；　overcame　whatever　was　immobilizing　her。

Minmei　threw　herself　at　Rem；　feeling　the　energy　discharges　around　her；　clinging　to　him；　and　together　they　vanished　from　the　starship。


CHAPTER　THIRTY…EIGHT

The　music　plays；　and　everyone　must　dance。
Twentieth…century　song　lyric

At　the　intersection　the　Robotech　Elders；　in　their　smaller…model　sphere　ship；　shrieked　their　outrage　and　despair。

We　had　an　agreement！

Haydon　answered；　THAT　MEANS　NOTHING　TO　ME

Free　us　with　the　Protoculture　as　you　abandon　your　sphere　ships！

What　they　said　was　true；　the　individual　simulacra　of　Haydon　were　vanishing　from　sight。　Somewhere　beyond；　they　sensed；　the　One　Haydon　was　ing　into　being　again。　He　had　no　further　use　for　the　ships　or　the　Protoculture…indeed；　He　released　them　to　meet　their　own　discorporation。

But　the　Elders'　sphere　He　kept　under　his　mental　control。　YOU；　I　WILL　BRING　WITH　ME　INTO　MY　NEW　DOMAIN；　AS　I　SHALL　BRING　ONE　OTHER　CONTAINER　FROM　SPACETIME。

You　struck　a　bargain　with　us！

DID　YOU　THINK　I　COULDN'T　SEE　BEYOND　YOUR　WORDS？　INTO　YOUR　THOUGHTS？

Then　the　Robotech　Elders　wailed　in　truest　fear；　they'd　planned　to　betray　Haydon　at　the　earliest　juncture　if　the　opportunity　arose。　Instead；　they　saw；　He　had　brought　them　along　until　he　could　exact　a　satisfactory　revenge。

He　was　immortal　but　mortal　enough　to　feel　that　urge。　The　venue　known　as　newspace　was　empty；　the　stuff　of　conventional　spacetime　banished　back　to　the　place　from　which　it　had　e。　Haydon　wanted　no　part　of　it；　that　was　the　entire　point　of　His　great　effort。

Instead；　He　discharged　into　newspace　all　the　accumulated　energies　of　His　crossing；　giving　Himself　unending　raw　material　with　which　to　work。　Haydon　willed　new　and　utterly　alien　physical　laws　into　being　and　set　out　to　explore　and　shape　His　new　domain。

Except；　that　is；　for　two　bubbles　of　normality。　The　first　among　those　was　the　prison　of　the　Robotech　Elders。　He　imprisoned　them　once　more　in　the　hated　thrones；　in　the　bondage　of　systems　that　would　ensure　their　survival。　They　perceived　that　some　of　the　substance　forming　their　bubble　was　the　stuff　of　their　Protoculture　cap　itself…depleted；　reshaped；　used　in　irony　by　Haydon。

Then　Haydon　accelerated　the　flow　of　time　within　the　sphere…to　ensure　its　passage　there。

Tens　of　thousands　of　years　might　pass　while　Haydon's　attention　was　elsewhere　for　an　instant；　but　every　so　often　Haydon　would　look　in　on　them　and　see　how　His　little　experiment　was　going。

The　Robotech　Elders；　imprisoned　in　the　hated　circle　in　which　they　had　started；　had　their　Immortality　at　last。


Perhaps　the　best　summation　of　subsequent　events　is　found　in　Recollections：　Peacetime　by　Admiral　Lisa　Hayes…Hunter。

So　those　glorious　old　drives　brought　us　home　at　last　in　grand　style。　Some　people　griped　that　it　was　a　near　thing；　pointing　out　that　the　drives　were　about　to　blow　when　we　came　crashing　out　into　Earthspace；　but　take　it　from　me；　they'd　have　done　whatever　they　needed　to；　to　get　the　job　done。

Of　course　by　〃home；〃　I　mean　conventional　spacetime；　the　Sol　system　wasn't　exactly　the　old　neighborhood　for　the　XT　Sentinels；　the　Zentraedi；　and　so　forth。

That　didn't　matter　much　at　the　time。

The　pure　joy　of　getting　back　to　Earthspace　was　dampened；　of　course；　when　we　realized　that　Minmei　and　Rem　had　disappeared。　This；　even　though　the　pilots　originally　〃kidnapped〃　from　Red　and　Blue　teams　were　miraculously　put　back　aboard　SDF…3；　Veritechs　and　all；　at　the　Intersection。　As　of　this　writing；　there　is　no　indication　whatsoever　of　what　happened　to　them；　and　all　efforts　to　locate　them　or　establish　their　fate　have　been　fruitless。

The　second　great　shock　of　our　arrival　was　the　calculation　（by　astronomical　Ads；　from　the　positions　of　planets　in　the　Sol　system）　of　the　elapsed　time　since　the　departure　of　Peter　Pan。　Foldspace　had　played　another　joke　on　us。

More　than　ten　years　had　passed。

But　that　wasn't　enough　to　dampen　our　morale；　not　after　what　we'd　been　through。　I　think　that　those　on　board　SDF…3　during　that　moment　of　Intersection　will　always　be　different。　We　were　given　a　new　perspective　on　life　and　death　and　our　place　in　the　scheme　of　things；　that　left　its　mark　on　us。

And　so　SDF…3　started　for　Earth　one　last　time；　driven　by　auxiliary　power。　Somehow　the　transit　from　newspace　had　drained　away　all　our　Second　Gen　Protoculture；　even　what　was　left　in　the　various　mecha。　We　shall　not　see　its　like　again；　as　the　saying　goes。

There's　no　denying　the　sheer　joy　of　homeing；　though。　The　Earth　below　us　was　the　first　and　best　surprise：　pristine　and　beautiful；　her　surface　restored；　her　ecosystems　flourishing　with　a　vitality　they　hadn't　known　in　a　century　and　a　half　and　more。

Maybe　it　was　some　kind　of　payback。

We　arrived　to　find　that　Earth　had　muddled　through　the　multiple　crises　that　had　beset　her；　largely　with　the　help　of　exotic　new　technology　developed　from　information　brought　home　by　the　Angel。

But　largely；　it　was　a　matter　of　humanity's　being　sick　of　war。　I've　heard　of　old　soldiers　retiring　from　the　carnage　to　create　and　retreat　into　a　beautiful　garden　somewhere。　I　guess　that's　more　or　less　what　happened　to　the　entire　species　Homo　sapiens。

Water　ice　had　been　brought　in　from　offworld；　pollution　damage　cleaned　up　through　bio…remedialism　and　other　newly　devised　techniques。　The　drifting　space　junk　from　the　Robotech　wars　had　all　been　removed；　or　burned　itself　up　in　atmospheric　entry。　The　planet　started　getting　better　simply　because　people　stopped　placing　impossible　demands　on　it　and　began　giving　something　back。　Too；　the　population　had　been　drastically；　catastrophically　reduced。

Besides；　there　was　aid　from　the　Local　Group　worlds　that　had；　by　that　time；　reached　Earth　via　the　new；　non　Protoculture　Pseudojaunt　drive。　（What　beautiful　starships　the　new　technologies　make　possible！　Earth　looked　like　she　had　magical　treasures　in　orbit　around　her　when　we　arrived。）　The　old　government　had　been　swept　away；　what　had　replaced　it　was　benign；　democratic；　and　very　participatory。

We　weren't　surprised　that　Louie　Nichols　and　his　byte　punchers；　in　particular；　saddled　up　and　threw　themselves　right　into　that　new　ferment。


I　got　a　sense　of　how　much　things　had　changed　when　we　（the　Hunters）　went　with　Scott　Bernard　and　Marlene　to　catch　up　with　old　friends　down　in　one　of　the　Restoration　Bureau's　South　American　reserves。　Young　Stone　Face　had　by　then　broken　down　and　faced　the　fact　that　he　loved　Marlene　（later；　Scott　even。　asked　and　got　a　reconciliation　with　Marlene　Rush's　parents；　who'd　survived　on　Tirol）　and　proposed　to　her。

But　he　still　felt　he　needed　a　little　moral　support　for　this　mission；　I　guess。

His　old　rade　Lunk　had　buried　his　bitterness；　however；　even　though　he　turned　his　face　away　and　was　shaken　by　sobs　when　he　saw　Marlene。　But　Lunk　gave　Scott　a　sincere　handshake　and　Marlene　a　heartbreakingly　chaste　kiss　on　the　cheek。　I'd　seen　old　pictures　of　him；　and　Lunk　had　changed　a　lot；　stomach　expanded；　hair　thinned　to　a　gray　fringe　around　his　bald　head。　He　looked　like　a　sad　old　simian。

Rand　and　Rook　Bartley　showed　up　with　little　Maria；　there　was　a　lot　of　ribbing　about　the　success　of　Rand's　Notes　on　the　Run；　Rook　doubting　he　could　cut　it　as　a　Forager　anymore。　He　did　seem　a　little　chagrined；　especially　since　his　wife　still　looked　like　she'd　kept　her　biker　edge。

Still；　it　was　plain　that　they　loved　each　other；　even　if　Rook　wasn't　happy　about　little　Maria's　preoccupation　with　her　word　processor。

Just　as　things　became　less　formal；　we　were　almost　run　over　by　a　dinosaur。　From　what　I'd　heard　of　Annie　LaBelle；　I　shouldn't　have　been　surprised　that　she　was　a　reckless　behemoth　driver。

Rick　and　I　were　looking　around　for　guns　that　we　weren't　carrying…since　nobody　has　any　on　Earth　anymore…but　Roy　II　thought　that　thunder　lizard　was　just　the　greatest　thing　since　crayons。

And　sitting　on　a　saddle　up　behind　its　head　was　Annie。　It　was　a　seismosaurus；　she　told　us　later；　biggest　of　the　herbivorous　heavyweights；　it　sure　impressed　me。

With　Annie　was　her　husband；　Magruder；　the　two　of　them　looking…and　dressed…like　a　new…tech　Tarzan　and　Jane。　Scott　made　some　ment　about　how　nicely　she'd　sprouted　up　and　filled　out；　and　Magruder　seemed　to　accept　that　with　great　pride。

At　the　local　Bureau　HQ；　Annie　and　Lunk　filled　us　in　on　all　the　strides　genetic　engineering　had　made　since　contact　with　the　Local　Group…and　especially；　of　course；　with　the　Tirolians。

Even　fossilized　genetic　models　could　be　revived；　and　existing　ones　cloned　and　varied；　differentiation　being　so　important　to　species　survival。　Not　only　were　pandas；　snow　leopards；　and　whales　thriving；　so　were　passenger　pigeons；　giant　sloths；　and　woolly　mammoths。

And　of　course；　the　biggest　debate　at　that　time　was　whether　it　would　be　immoral　to　bring　Neanderthals　back　from　extinction　（or；　to　put　it　another　way；　leave　them　extinct）。　Annie　and　Magruder…both　of　whom　had　advanced　degrees　in　neogenetics　were　passionate　about　opposite　sides　of　the　argument；　as　ready　to　punch　it　out　as　they　were　to　kiss　and　make　up。

At　any　rate；　Scott　and　Marlene's　strike　force　reunion　turned　gut　well；　but　I　had　my　first　real　exposure　to　the　fact　that　an　aging　SDF　skipper　wasn't　exactly　in　demand　anymore　in　this　brave　new　world。　I　was　out　of　phase；　bereft　of　background　data。　There　were　more　shocks　waiting　for　all　of　us。

What　hit　Scott　and　Marlene　hardest；　I　think；　was　news　of　he　death　of　the　freedom　fighter　named　Lancer；　also　known　as　Yellow　Dancer。　But　something　bore　them　up　when　they　beard　how　he　died　flying　a　disaster　relief　mission。　I　think　it　was　the　insights　of　the　Intersection；　where　we　all　saw　the　big　picture　a　little　more　clearly。

That；　plus　the　fact　that　his　music　lives　on　after　him；　as　popular　now　as　Minmei's。　People　started　to　talk　about　slipping　in　fingers　of　the　two…recreation　artists　for　〃The　Concert　That　Never　Was。〃　The　idea　was　almost　universally　ignored。　Perhaps　the　slimy…souled　people　who　came　up　with　it　would　feel　differently　if　they'd　gone　through　the　Intersection。

The　effects　of　that　passage　and　its　insights　were　pointed　up　electrifyingly　when　a　few　of　us　were　flown　out　for　a　tour　of　a　big　reforestation　program　in　Alaska。　It　was　an　especially　affecting　trip　for　Rick　and　me；　since　we　weren't　so　far　from　where　the　Grand　Cannon　installation　once　was。

We　were　shown　to　where　people　worked；　patiently　reseeding　the　restored　and　prepared　slopes　with　tiny　firs。　I　didn't　notice　anything　in　particular；　walking　past　a　bent　figure　that　seemed　to　be　giving　all　its　attention　lovingly　to　what　was　being　done。　It　was　Dana；　a　few　paces　behind；　who　let　out　a　yell。

Rick　and　I　turned　to　see　the　Sterlings　and　our　guide　looking　on　in　horror　as　Dana；　hauling　at　the　worker's　faded　coverall；　prepared　to　deal　him　a　blow　to　the　side　of　the　temple　with　the　heel　of　her　cocked…back　hand。　No　question　about　it；　she　was　out　to　kill。

Part　of　our　astonishment；　too；　was　the　appearance　of　the　worker。　I　have　never　seen　such　a　gnarled；　pitifully　scarred；　frightened　creature　in　my　life。　He　dropped　his　little　tray　of　seedlings；　and　all　he　could　do　was　cringe　and　whimper。　Yet　Dana；　eyes　bugging　from　her　head；　wasn't　deterred　a　bit。

Rick　and　I　were　revving　up；　trying　to　get　to　her　to　stop；　like　cartoon　characters　having　trouble　getting　into　motion。　Max　and　Miriya；　who'd　been　looking　the　other　way；　were　kind　of　tangled　up　with　each　other。

But　there　was　someone　else　to　intervene。　Not　that　Dana　was　overpowered…a　tough　proposition　at　any　time。　Still；　when　Aurora's　gentle　hand　came　to　rest　on　Dana's　tensed；　heelshot　one；　the　action　froze。

〃You　don't　want　to　do　that。　Sister…〃

And　with　that；　Aurora　went　up　on　tiptoes　to　whisper　something　into　Dana's　ear。　The　rest　of　us　had　stood　rooted；　and　we　saw　Dana's　hand　relax　as　she　released　the　man　cowering　in　her　grip。　Dana　looked　around　the　reseeded　slopes；　the　life　that　was　ing　back　to　a　devastated　wasteland；　and　turned　away。

As　Dana　walked　back　toward　our　shuttle；　one　of　the　program　supervisors　gently　got　the　man　back　to　work；　saying　reassuring　things；　calling　him　〃Alf。〃

I　ran　a　check　and　found　out　about　the　assassination　of　Milicent　Edgewick　and　the　disappearance　of　her　familiar。　Dana's　instincts　were　correct；　and　the　brainwiped；　hollow　wretch　she'd　been　about　to　kill　was　Farnham；　once　known　as　Senator　Alfonse　Napoleon　Russo；　though　now　he　only　answered　to　the　name　Alf。　How　he　found　his　way　into　a　custodial　rehab　program　for　marginally　functional　war　casualty　types；　no　one　was　able　to　say。

Heaven　knows；　Dana　had　good　cause　to　execute　him；　all　of　us　did。　But　seeing　what　he'd　e　to　in　the　end；　we　dropped　the　matter。　I've　never　presumed　to　ask　Aurora　what　it　was　she　whispered　into　her　sister's　ear；　but　I　imagine　it　was　to　the　effect　that　there　had　been　enough　death；　part　of　the　revivifying　process　we　and　the　planet　are　undergoing　has　to　do　with　putting　certain　things　behind　us。


SDF…3's　returnees　scattered　to　all　corners　of　the　world　in　those　weeks。　Louie　Nichols　and　his　team　were　quick　to　start　snooping　into　the　Post…Protoculture　technologies；　and　they　were　weled　with　open　arms　by　the　Earth's　top　researchers；　then　castigated　for　their　heretical　approach　to　things。　Nothing　new　there。

Nevertheless；　Louie　&　Co。　became　the　driving　force　toward　this　new　grail　called　Instru…Mentality。　Implants　that　will　give　every　intelligent　being　powers　of　teleportation；　psychokinesis；　telepathy；　and　the　rest　would　be　the　next　logical　step…a　new　dawn；　to　be　sure…but　I　can't　help　wondering　if　we're　ready　for　it。

But　as　Cabell　pointed　out；　no　one　was　ready　for　Robotech；　either；　when　you　e　right　down　to　it。

Anyway；　the　Robotech　Age；　with　its　mechamorphosis　and　Protoculture；　has　passed　away　forever；　and　something　else　must　now　e　onstage。


The　experiences　of　various　others　have　been　set　down　elsewhere；　by　themselves　and　third　parties。　Of　the　rollicking　group　（Dana；　Sean；　Marie；　Jack；　Karen；　and　several　more）　who　became　the　Crazy　Eights　Exploration　and　Development　Co。；　Unlimited；　much　has　already　been　written…a　good　deal　of　it　on　indictments。　And　why　they　took　on　Lunk　as　their　head　wrench　wrangler　and　mojo　hand；　I　cannot　guess…but　it's　probably　one　of　their　few　sources　of　good　karma。

Still；　they're　young　and　carefree；　and　they　keep　claiming　they've　got　the　galaxy　by　the　bustle。

If　you've　been　lucky　enough　to　get　a　seat　at　Bowie　Grant's　Blue　Harp　Lounge　to　hear　Musica　and　Alleg