The Orchid Cage by Franke Herbert W

Author:Franke, Herbert W. [Franke, Herbert W.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Science Fiction
Publisher: DAW Books
Published: 1973-04-04T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 7

After another night in the tent—a night for Al and Rene full of expectant dreams—they awoke when Don got up noisily and crawled outside.

“Do you think we can talk him around to our plan?’ asked Rene softly.

Al stretched. “It’ll be difficult, but I’ll try.”

“What are you talking about?” murmured Kat, still half asleep. “What’s the time?”

“Time to be up,” said Al, and followed Rene out of the tent.

After a quick breakfast, they were ready to set out.

“Do you still have your weapons?” said Don.

“Are you going to try shooting again?’ asked Rene.

“Of course! Do you think I would give up so soon? We’ve knocked off one of them, so that only leaves two. Of course, we’ll have to be careful. We’ll destroy all the eye-spheres in the area, and make use of the time in which the machines wont know what we’re up to. Does anyone disagree with it?”

Rene gave Al a quiet nudge. “The plan is good,” he said, “but we were thinking things over yesterday, and we have a new idea. Tell him, AL”

Al told Don the gist of the discussion he had had with Rene. Don listened with his brow furrowed. Then he interrupted, demonstratively clapping his hands over his ears.

“As soon as I leave you alone you start getting ideas,” he shouted. “What do you want to do… start a detailed investigation of their technology? And a theory of philosophy and linguistics, and all that rubbish? Mark my words, the best way to reach a destination is by heading straight for it! If I want something, I take it.”

“And what have you achieved so far by that method?” asked Rene.

Don adopted a superior, didactic tone. “Look, boys,” he said. “I won’t claim that you’ll get nowhere by your method, but it will take too long. In the meantime, Jak and Heiko will have made it, and with any luck we’ll be invited to their celebration party.”

“But, Don,” said Al, distressed. “You must surely see that we have to use other methods here. Just look at this thing!” He pulled the pistol from Don’s belt and held it under his nose. “You try to protect yourself from the machines with a toy like this. You’re up against an intelligence of which you have no understanding at all, and which has produced all this!” He tossed the weapon on the floor, and grabbed _ Don by the shoulders and turned him around. “Just look

at this incredible place, will you! And what’s more, this is nothing! It’s much too simple and crude. It looks different from what we have on Earth, but the operations carried out can all be understood by us. What this means is that it’s at the same stage of development as our own technology. But this was built a long time ago… things have progressed much further here since then. Somewhere, that later development must be waiting! It will be much more complicated and powerful than any one of us could imagine! What you want to do here is simply laughable!”

Don had never seen Al so angry.

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