Part 2 (1/2)
”h.e.l.lo, Perry. Glad to see you. Nice that you find a little time to visit me again.”
”The pleasure is all mine. How are you feeling? According to Haggard you seem to undergo a period of rejuvenation.”
”Yes, indeed. I feel born again. This man has worked miracles with me.”
”He is our most outstanding physician,” agreed Rhodan.
Khrest, too, had very light, almost white hair and reddish eyes. His unusually high caused his forehead to extend to more than half the size of his whole head. All other characteristics that distinguished the alien from human race were of on organic nature. Instead of a rib cage enclosing and protecting the vital organs of heart and lungs, Khrest had a solid, bony thorax. This certainly afforded better protection against injury but would make it more difficult to gain access in case of a needed operation.
Compared with human beings, Khrest was a genius. His photographic memory was similar to the workings of an electronic brain. He was a living computer of the highest capacity.
”Unfortunately, we do not have anyone to compare to Dr. Haggard,” continued Khrest. ”Maybe this is the reason our race fell ill. We are in possession of the means for prolonging life, and this made us careless. We began to degenerate, for our boundless conceit did not permit us to mix with other races. We are a highly inbred race - all of us are somehow related.”
”I have mentioned already that your people are in need of new blood.”
”How do you imagine that to come about practically?” asked Khrest, smiling feebly. ”I admit that your physical and mental capacities are young and strong. Combined with our superior knowledge, this might result in a race of giant intellects-of course, only from a theoretical point of view, to begin with, for it would take many generations for the results of such a fantastic experiment to become evident. No, I believe that we are past any help; we have waited too long. And besides, can you really seriously imagine that Thora would ever consider mingling her blood with that of a human being who is only a primitive in her eyes?”
”Definitely not,” Rhodan shook his head.
Khrest pushed a b.u.t.ton. The concave wall next to his bed slid aside, and an oval shaped window appeared. Rhodan noticed that they were about 120 feet above the ground. A magnificent view of the surrounding desert spread out in front of them. The sun was high in the sky behind the s.h.i.+p. Far to the north there was a chain of low lying hills.
”This landscape reminds me in some ways of my own home planet, at least the way it must have looked a long time ago,” said Khrest softly. ”But then we became the focal point of a galactic empire, and we could no longer permit ourselves the luxury of a genuinely natural environment.”
”I would like to be able to visit Arkon someday, Khrest.”
The white haired scientist smiled indulgently. ”You might be disappointed, Perry. Our world, as big as your own, is nothing but one huge city. One immense, hollowed out honeycomb. Nevertheless, someday you will see Arkon.”
Perry leaned forward, surprised. ”I? Able to see Arkon? How?”
Khrest lay down again He looked up at the low ceiling of the cabin; then he fixed his glance on Rhodan. ”Yes, you will visit Arkon, Perry Rhodan. Perhaps I did not make myself clear when I spoke of regenerating our own blood. There can never be a mingling of our races, for yours would be the loser in this process. But there is a possibility that once mankind is united-but definitely not before that point-the human race, guided by the Arkonides, might take over the heritage of the galactic empire. What do you think of such a dream for the future?”
Rhodan breathed deeply. ”Too fantastic a dream to be considered seriously, Khrest. You are masters of a galaxy wide realm, and you would never abdicate your power voluntarily. On the other hand, man is too immature yet even to dare dream of such an empire.”
”I am afraid that you, too, underestimate man's potential,” Khrest said. ”I had many an occasion to discuss these matters with Dr. Haggard. He shares my view in this respect.”
”Even if I should believe in man's dormant capabilities, I could not deceive myself that the Arkonides would be capable of such a display of unselfishness.”
”Don't judge us by Thora!” admonished Khrest gently. ”She is the commanding officer of an expedition and has been specially trained for this task. Her sharp and logical mind is the result of intensive indoctrination.”
”What do you mean by that?”
”Indoctrination is a hypnotic method of teaching that activates the parts of the brain that lie fallow, while the parts that are already functioning become intensified.”
”Training by hypnosis then, isn't it?”
”Yes, if you prefer to call it that. With this method you can transform a primitive creature into an intelligent being, provided, of course, that it has a brain to begin with. I intend to use this approach to transmit some of our own knowledge to you.”
Rhodan stepped back instinctively. ”What? you want toa?” he was gasping for air. ”Why?”
Khrest was still smiling. ”You are so full of distrust, my friend. You a.s.sume I could not do anything unselfish. You are right to some extent. I am thinking far ahead, of times to come. With bold strokes I am painting a picture of the future, but this is not solely the future of the Arkonides. They will no longer be alone. Two related races will rule the galaxy, the Arkonides together with the Terrans. Please Perry, note the expression *Terrans.' You are probably aware of the tremendous difference between a human being and a Terran. You, Perry, went out into s.p.a.ce, and this automatically made you a Terran. Everybody changes into Terran, once he experiences the feeling of being able to close his hands around the globe. The others, though, especially those who are attacking us, are nothing but human beings who are completely unaware that their home planet, Earth, represents only a starting base for the future. All intelligent life has originated from the ocean, for this is where the archetypal cell was born. But the ocean belongs to the same category of environment as the universe. Thus, man returns to his original home when he moves out into s.p.a.ce. And someday in the future, once the Terrans and the Arkonides have solidified their star realm, Earth will have become nothing but a legend. This world will be lost amidst the millions of tiny specks of light in the infinity of a borderlines ocean.”
Khrest fell silent for a few minutes. This gave Rhodan the opportunity to absorb this colossal vision of the future.
Then Khrest continued, ”In a few centuries the Arkonides will no longer be able to hold together their empire. Already now and then some planets are trying to regain their independence. Needless to say, this independence would not do them much good, since they would only use it to tear each other to pieces. Therefore, to maintain general peace within the galaxy, we must make sure that a strong hand holds the reins. Unfortunately, though, the Arkonides become increasingly incapable of fulfilling this task. But rather than permitting the collapse of this cosmic empire and witnessing its conquest by some stronger and perhaps more cruel ruler, we prefer to share our power with an ally who owes his position of strength to us. We want friends that feel obligated and grateful to us for the help we gave them. We have never before encountered a race who would be more suitable for this purpose than your own, the inhabitants of the planet Earth near the edge of the galaxy. Do you understand, now, that I am acting selfishly by making you strong?”
Perry Rhodan nodded slowly in agreement. He understood.
”These are the reasons that decided me to entrust you to our indoctrinator, even if this goes against Thora's wishes. But I feel the need to have two human beings on my side. Will you please tell me the name of your best friend. I want him to obtain the same schooling via the indoctrinator that you will get. Am I wrong in a.s.suming that you will suggest Reginald Bell's name to me?”
Rhodan nodded a.s.sent. ”What does tills hypnotic schooling process entail?”
”Don't worry that we will waste any time,” smiled the Arkonide scientist. ”If we can start right away, today, then already by tomorrow you and your friend Bell will possess more knowledge than is shared by all the world collectively. In addition to that, certain areas of your brain will become activated that would remain dormant for many thousands of years if you let events follow their natural course of normal development or mutationally induced progress. As I have already mentioned, to a certain extent you will receive some telepathic powers; that much I know for sure. But I cannot predict what other dormant characteristics will be awakened. Quite possibly they will become activated, although not, fully developed.”
”That sounds really incredible.”
”You will comprehend this process better once you share our knowledge. We have brought such an indoctrinator with us in order to educate less intelligent races. This enables those whom we have treated to become mental giants who can then transmit to their own race advanced ideas that will lead them along the path of progress. It is nothing but an artificial acceleration of a process that would take too long under normal circ.u.mstances. As far as you are concerned, I am proceeding much more radically. There will be no intermediate steps. I will have you jump across the gap of many millennia. You will turn into a type of man that will perhaps become the norm in another 10,000 years, when the galactic empire will be firmly entrenched on the basis the Arkonides have built before.”
Again Khrest was silent, leaving Rhodan time to ponder these new facts.
Now Perry began to comprehend the apparently magnanimous att.i.tude of the alien scientist. By helping man, he served foremost his own interest and that of his own race.
Perry pondered this thought. A logical solution for particular situation.
”I am willing to go along with your plans,” he said calmly, despite his inner excitement. ”But what will Thora have to say to this?”
Khrest shrugged. ”She will have to come to terms with the idea. After all, I am the scientific leader of this expedition and must make the decisions.”
”But she is the commander!” objected Rhodan.
”True enough. That means that she is responsible for the s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p and the flight but not for scientific measures. These are solely my responsibility. You can rest a.s.sured that I know exactly what I am doing.”
Rhodan did not doubt this for an instant.
Two hours later Khrest took Rhodan and Bell to a part of the s.p.a.ce sphere that had been inaccessible to them up to this point. In the midst of complicated machinery connected by an apparent confusion of cables, were two isolated chairs with electronic helmets. These helmets were provided with several metal clamps that led into the machines. Somewhere an ominous hum could be heard, and an array of lights blinked constantly on and off.
The white haired scientist pointed to the two chairs. ”The indoctrinator. Have a seat, please. You will lose consciousness and will not be aware of what is going on around you. The installation functions automatically. You see here a scale where I will set the exact amount of knowledge to be transferred to you. As you have probably noticed already, I have selected the highest possible degree for both of you. This will bring you up to the mental level of the Arkonides. As far as your inborn character is concerned, it will remain unchanged.”
Reginald Bell regarded the helmets with obvious distrust. ”This reminds me too much of the hot seats in Sing-Sing.”
”What do you mean by Sing-Sing?” inquired Khrest.
”That is an inst.i.tution for locking up criminals,” Rhodan enlightened him sarcastically. ”Reg is afraid to share their fate of getting electrocuted on these seats, which resemble electric chairs where criminals are executed for their crimes against society.”
”Just sit down. You won't feel a thing,” Khrest rea.s.sured the hesitant Bell.
Rhodan felt a light p.r.i.c.kling sensation on his skin after Khrest had attached the clamps to the machinery. The hum grew stronger. Khrest placed his hand on a yellow lever and looked at them.