The Stars Came Back (56 page)

Allonia looks at him like she doesn’t quite get it.

Helton: In English, is there any difference between “the boy threw the ball” and “the ball was thrown by the boy”?

Allonia: Noooo… Don’t think so. Well, one is possibly past tense, or at least very… passive? Haven’t studied grammar in a while.

Helton: Teaching, I fought with grammar regularly. Do you know if it’s happening now, or in the past, just from the words, the first way?

Allonia shakes her head.

Helton: In this language there are slightly different forms for those two possible meanings, and only seems to be one way to say each one, so it’s very hard to misunderstand something. An honest lawyer would love this language. Contracts would be easy to write explicitly, clearly, and short. A dishonest lawyer would hate it; no ambiguity to weasel around with. Poets would have a hard time with double entendre or puns.

Allonia: What’s that tell you about
them?

Helton: If it’s their native language, I think I’d like them a lot. Honest. Exact. Clear. But it
might just be an artificially constructed language for establishing inter-species communication. Kind of a coincidence that there are some obvious binary bases, like 512 total symbols; 12 digits, 52 letters, upper and lower case for each. There are 128 basic letters and numbers, 384 symbols for the math and science.

Allonia: That
many?

Helton: Not really.
About the same as English, plus all the Greek alphabet and normal science and math symbols.

Allonia looks
skeptical.

Helton: Symbols for degree. Greater than. Equal to. Plus. Minus. Divide. Square root. Parentheses. Apostrophe. Quotes. Brackets. Integral. About a hundred just for set notation. The letter “i”
is used for imaginary numbers, electrical current, irradiance, inertia-

Allonia:
Yeah, yeah, OK, I get the point. So, what’s your best guess, then, with a heaping side order of caveats and maybes?

Helton: Top line, literal, is
something like “appear when all done.” In English, “we, the Planet Movers, will reveal ourselves to you, the readers of this, when you have shown you have done all of the following things.”

Allonia: I see what you mean. Like the short version, understand the long one.

Helton: Exactly. The next line we’re pretty sure about. The “≡” more or less means “as shown by” or “as demonstrated by”, and the circle with a center dot that looks sort of like theta “Θ” means “thus it is proven,” or Q.E.D. They use them in proofs. “Master science and engineering, demonstrated by reading this.” The “Master” word is troubling, though. I’m pretty sure it has important nuance we’re missing. Basically, you have to know enough science and technology to achieve FTL flight, which you must have done to get to the stars, find these inscriptions, and translate them, so by virtue of the fact that you are reading this, you must have FTL and have a pretty good understanding of science and engineering. Simple enough concept. Sort of a noninterference clause with technologically primitive cultures.

Allonia: OK, makes sense. But the other three lines
don’t have that QED thingy, so we
haven’t
proven them yet, right?

Helton: That’s the assumption. The other three are a pain. Assuming “master” is right, and I’m not sure it is more than an approximation, like
deinos
meaning terrible, they are “one person master one person,” “one person master all people,” and “master war.” Maybe. Not a blippin’ clue what the other side is. Not even sure what the left side
means
.

Allonia: Well, master war is clear enough.

Helton looks at her skeptically.

Allonia: Well, it means you don’t fight
anymore… Right?

Helton: But not fight
why
? Can’t? Don’t want to? Don’t need to? No more enemies? Why not mean “be really good at it”? Or “everyone is a soldier”? Or “fight all the time”? Or “conquer all other known races”? Or “no wars in at least three generations” ? Or “practice all military technologies and styles”? They
do
have swords and spears surrounding the inscription. And how many people fighting, for how long, is considered a “war” as opposed to just a brawl, or kids growing up? There is vocabulary, syntax and grammar, and there is
meaning
. And the answers (gestures to the grenade-damaged pages in the book in front of him, poking his finger into the middle of the missing pages) are in a holey book.
 

FADE TO BLACK

BFR

FADE IN

INT - DAY - Cargo bay

The ramp is down and another cargo truck is backing in. Stenson, Alvarez and another dozen of his trainees are there. The truck slowly lifts and deposits a midsized container onto the cargo bay deck with a deep booming as is it set down.

Stenson: All
right! Let’s get them upstairs!

CUT TO

INT
- DAY - Engineering

Three engineer trainees are manhandling o
ne the mystery cylinders into position near the hatch with the candle logo. Stenson stands at a console in the background. They roll it into the hatch, where automatic handling equipment rotates it slightly, then lowers it out of sight.

Stenson:
Last one. Now then, let’s see what we can find out about our Roman Candle.

He reaches out, taps a few controls, some readouts change.
Every screen and light goes dark for a moment. Total darkness. Then they turn a deep, intense blue. Small, white, blocky text shows appears a couple of screens at the far side of the room.

Alvarez: (
Quietly) Shit. Did you finally find the reset button? Or kill it?

In the intense blue light, they
approach the text on the screen. Closer, it is readable.

INSET - The text reads “Just messin’ with you for that RESET remark. I like my bits the way they are.”

They are all surprised, one inhales sharply, and all the screens and lighting return to normal.

Stenson looks around him, a suspicious look on his face.

Ship AI: (OC, normal male voice) I’d advise not testing it at the moment.

Stenson: (
Surprised) Not test?

Ship AI: (OC) Correct
. It would not be safe, the backstop is questionable.

Stenson:
(Confused) Backstop?

Ship AI: (OC)
Hills.

Stenson: Ah… back
up. What sort of system is it? In normal terms, not “Roman Candle” riddles.

Ship AI: It converts electrical potential energy into other forms.

Stenson: (Takes a deep breath) What energy conversion needs
hills
?

Ship AI: (OC) The one you should be concerned with at the moment is kinetic.

Stenson: Kinetic? But the specs... You sure?

Ship AI: (OC) Quite
. That’s why you want to keep it unloaded.

Stenson: Loaded with what?

Ship AI: (OC) Projectiles. (Somewhat apologetic) Ah, found the word you want. Sorry. Scatterbrained. BFR.

Alvarez: BFR?

Ship AI: (OC Cheerfully) Affirmative. Previous crew referred to it that way… Yes, the R
does
stand for railgun. Finding old memories is fun.

Eyebrows are raised all around as
looks of comprehension appear on their faces.

Stenson: Energy?

Ship AI: (OC) 42 gigajoule maximum.

Stenson: Velocity?

Ship AI: (OC) Variable, depending on projectile type, size, and need.

Stenson: Velocity with optimal projectile to maximize projectile energy?

Ship AI: (OC) Approximately 130 kilometers per second.

Stenson: Maximum velocity?

Ship AI: (OC) Approximately 300 kilometers per second, depending on conditions.

Stenson: Yeeeaaahhhhh… I think
not
test firing it on the ground near a city would be a very neighborly thing to do. Might make a mess. Projectile would likely vaporize from atmo heating, but the thunderclap would be impressive.

Ship AI: (OC) Each section also stores electrical power for emergency use in other systems.

Stenson: How?

Ship AI: (OC) Either back-feed in normal conduits when in place or low
power wireless if removed.

Stenson: Like batteries that work anywhere.

Ship AI: (OC) Yes. Most useful when shore power is intermittent and main power is offline.

Stenson
has another “aha” moment.

Ship AI: (OC) A small supply of projectiles
is located in a locker in the machine room behind the auxiliary bridge, and specifications for more are now available if larger stocks are desired. I’m sure the First Sergeant would want more.

Stenson: He’d want more if we had so many we were tripping over them.

Ship AI: Ammunition is like money. It’s hard to have too much.

Stenson: You’ve been talking to him, haven’t you?

Ship AI: I listen to everyone that talks to me… and experience is a pitiless teacher.

DISSOLVE TO

INT - DAY - Bridge

Quiritis at the helm, running another simulation. Helton walks in.

Helton: Got some
great news, oh favorite pilot.

Quiritis: You found out what the M38Js are?

Helton: Even better. The railgun is now officially online. All we have-

Quiritis: REALLY!? The BFR?

Helton nods.

Quiritis: OK,
now
we’re a privateer!

Helton: I take it you think a railgun is good to have.

Quiritis: Not just any railgun. The BFR is about the best now in use
anywhere
. You saw how much damage the main railguns on the grav-tanks did?

Helton: Yeah.

Quiritis: Those are about twenty megajoules. This one is more than two
thousand
times as powerful.

Helton raises his eyebrows in surprise.

Helton: When you put it that way…

Quiritis: Not many ships can shrug off a hit equivalent to ten tonnes of explosives focused on a single point. Center hit, nothing short of a small moon can survive. And with the velocity it has, it’s
damn hard to dodge. Overkill for most things, which is why modern ships go for smaller railguns. Easier to aim, higher rate of fire.

Helton: What do
you think is best?

Quiritis: Me?
Anything
on
Taj
is best. Always does more than it looks like it should on paper. Weapons
and
people.

She smiles at him, and Helton smiles back.

FADE TO BLACK

Unexpected Parties

FADE IN

INT - DAY - Cargo Bay

Helton stands near Quinn, Lag and Kat. He’s partially clad in space armor which is a high-tech cross between a spacesuit and medieval head-to-toe articulated plate armor, trying to get the rest of it on with Lag’s help. It is both very serviceable and stylish. Quinn is dressed in shorts and a tee shirt, a dirty bandage on his thigh is visible below the shorts.

Lag:
Pretty sharp.

Helton: Thanks. Quinn pulled it out. Fits perfectly.

Quinn: Said your armor was in storage.

Helton: So you did, so you did. Hand me that arm
piece, please.

Quinn hands it to him.

Kat: Looking like a real spacer, now. How soon will you be ready to fly?

Helton: Dunno. Stenson has things pulled apart again. Raving about some sort of breakthrough on the drives, how to get all six cores synced up and both drives at once. He was talking theory
very fast that was way over my head. You’d think he just found out his pet unicorn had triplets.

Kat: Got a few things to send back to Plataea. Figured if you were going that way…

Helton: Glad to carry something for you, if we can. Might be a good chance to test Stenson’s drive mods. Best keep copies, though; may be a star someday.

Kat: Hope not.

Helton and Lag are focusing on attaching the armor, and Quinn is watching him intently. Kat has her back to the lowered ramp.

Ship AI: (OC, pleasant male voice) Visitor.

The four of them look up sharply and turn. There stands Brother Libra smiling. He bows shallowly in greeting.

Helton: Oh, hello, Brother Libra! Welcome! I didn’t expect you! Come in, come in!