Perhaps the most startling thing about the Dorans that had been captured was that the Athena officers could understand them. They had translation equipment that could handle English and convert that language into their own. The survivors had been escorted into one of the side rooms near the transit station, where they had been searched with tricorders for any hidden weapons. After the first search, they were moved up into the residential section, in an area that was secured and turned into a brig-like facility, including forcefield barriers. The Dorans were placed four to a cell, and were guarded by the security officers, and a few of the other personnel on the lander who had been pressed into guard duty. Rocha had responsibility for interrogating some of the Dorans. A few spoke willingly. Thorpe had decided to postpone taking the lander and searching for Matsubara until he learned what information the captives could provide.
One of the aliens, who appeared quite young, did not hesitate in talking. In fact, Rocha and Hakamura soon had Thorpe and Bayanhong join them. "What's the story so far?" asked the captain.
"It was as the note implied. The Dorans, through pride or laziness, don't want to work the land themselves. This man, Kalikar, said it was backbreaking work, since the land was poor, water was in short supply and the heavy use of fertilizer was degrading the land. The Dorans have too much pride to do this work themselves if they don't have to, so they capture any aliens that stumble onto the artifacts and basically enslave them to grow their food."
"What's interesting," Hakamura added, "is that the Dorans have intentionally allowed the inbound function to remain active."
"In essence, they set these devices to capture people and bring them here?"
"Yes, and they keep the outbound function turned off so that those who are captured cannot return home."
"But," Thorpe said, "that does imply that they can turn on the outbound function."
Bayanhong said, "I don't see how they can ever maintain enough slaves to allow them to have their grunt work done for them. What are the odds of these structures being stumbled upon?"
"Well, it didn't take much for the one on Charamand to be activated, or the one on Norg."
"Also," Rocha added, "there may be a hundred thousand of these structures, maybe more, on this planet. They apparently connect points all over the galaxy." The security chief turned back to the captured Doran, and asked, "If your people are so reluctant to farm the land, then why are you not so reluctant to join in this attack?"
"We do it," the nervous young alien started, "to get a name."
"What do you mean?" Thorpe asked.
"By being part of a successful raid, we're saying that we're worthy of being full participants in our society. We gain the right to our name. We gain the right to marry and raise a family."
"That's disgusting," Bayanhong retorted, as she looked away.
"Not now, commander," Thorpe cut in.
Kalikar continued, "I grew up listening to stories from my father, about the raids. They seemed so easy. Before, we had no resistance. I heard of a story of a group that could not be reached because they had put up a barrier, and many died in the attempt to penetrate that."
"The Odonans," Hakamura said, "and that burned-out wreck we saw there."
"They were mourned. We all understood the risks. Nearly every time, a raid comes off successfully. The others have no weapons. Most are not trained to resist, and most don't. In time, they are all captured. Our group leader said that the people taken from here on the first raid were good workers, skilled, strong and durable. We could improve our food situation."
"You could improve your situation a lot if you did the work yourselves!" Bayanhong blurted out. She got a look from the captain. Knowing that Matsubara was out there, and he was listening to this, she had to wonder how Thorpe was retaining his composure.
"It is not... our way. We have always been warriors. It's our way, our culture, our method of being-why we were left behind here, no longer useful on our homeworld, which had moved beyond the need for us. We had no choice."
"Oh, you've got choices," Thorpe said. "Adaptability is a good thing. Adjusting the conditions is good, but forcing the conditions to adjust to you is not good, and ultimately does not result in as good an outcome. Your use of slaves and the like to grow your food made you lazy, and dependent. What happens if nobody was left on this planet but Dorans? What happened if the gateways no longer worked?"
"We cannot conceive of that."
Thorpe decided to change the topic to something closer to what he wanted. "Where is your location? Are the others there?"
"They are. I do not know about... location. It's the point in the transit system where we emerge."
Bayanhong added, "Sir, I get the feeling that the transit system is a miniaturized version of the gateway portals in that something opens, and you go from here to there, bypassing what's in between. Location might be a meaningless concept here."
"We'd have to search for the others using sensors on board the lander."
One thing that did concern Thorpe was that the buildings here seemed to be impervious to sensors, so it was possible that Matsubara and the others might be hidden inside the structures, making them much more difficult to find. He needed information. "What does your location look like? Is the shape similar to what is here?"
"It is much larger," Kalikar remarked, "built around the spire and inside it."
"Spire?"
"The original structure, the centre of the crater."
"Crater? How big of a crater?" Kalikar gave an answer that implied that the crater was large, upto a hundred and twenty kilometres in diameter, with walls rising ten to twelve kilometres above the crater floor, and in the centre, a tall, narrow spire. "That should stand out," Thorpe remarked. "How many craters like that can you find on this planet?"
"Not many," Bayanhong agreed. "It's at least the first place to look."
Kalikar spoke up, asking, "What will happen to me? Will you kill me, or will you let me return?"
Bayanhong spoke up first, asking, "If you're here to get a name for yourself, which of those two alternatives would deny you that name?"
"If I get home, I can get the name."
"Even if the raid was a failure?"
"There's no dishonour in losing a battle. We fought well, but we were defeated."
Hakamura, standing near the captain, said, "Perhaps we can use them for negotiation. Perhaps the Dorans are willing to deal, to get their people back in exchange for them turning on the outbound function so that we can go home."
Instinctively, Thorpe knew that was not a good idea, since it seemed to violate the spirit of the Federation and what they stood for. It would be much more desirable if Thorpe could convince the Dorans that their approach was wrong and that there was a better way. It would be a way to get the desired results without using threats and the possibility of violence. On the other hand, if he could get Matsubara and the others back more quickly, and then return home to the galaxy... he really did not care what happened on this planet. Actually, he realized, he did care. He did not want any more races to fall into this trap, but it was impossible to get a message across to the entire galaxy to warn them of this place. It would be much better, he thought, if he could turn off the inbound function permanently. "In truth, I haven't decided yet what to do with them," Thorpe finally said. "It depends on what I learn..."
* * *
Matsubara was actually quite surprised to see Teklensho again. The armed Dorans had guided them into the component of the structure that had the gateway, although this location lacked the cavern and the apparently large starship transporting feature. They took the three captives to one of the rooms near the room where Matsubara had first encountered an alleged leader, and left them there. The room was bare, with a bench along one wall, and nothing more than four bare metal walls, a similar bare metal floor and ceiling, and a single light panel. The door was secured from the outside.
Stanislava, sitting beside Kayaha, asked, "How much longer do you think we have?"
"I don't know," the Odonan answered. "After sixty-one years on this cold, barren planet, I never thought it would come down to this."
"Strange the courses that life takes you sometimes."
"Yeah, true."
The conversation abruptly stopped when the door noisily opened. Two Dorans entered the room, and Matsubara recognized instantly that one was Teklensho. Oddly, despite their circumstances, she felt a slight sense of relief that the man was alright. On the other hand, Stanislava and Kayaha were increasingly nervous. Afterall, the two Dorans carried the same kind of weapon that Teklensho had with him in their journey to the faulty water extraction pump.
Matsubara decided to take charge. She stood up and faced the two Dorans, and asked a simple question, "What's going to happen to us now?"
Teklensho stepped forward, perhaps implying to the humans that he was the one in charge. "I do not know. That's not my decision to make. It's up to the leadership. All I know is that a lot of damage has been done." The man looked down, and spent some time contemplating what he had to say. Matsubara had no alternative but to stand there and wait. The Doran finally started to speak, but in a more hesitant voice. "Because I had associated with you earlier, I was asked by the leadership to get information from you."
Stanislava spoke up, saying, "I hope that what was said about you being a collaborator was not true."
"Definitely not," Matsubara said.
Teklensho started, "This was a very dark day for us."
"Are you referring to the fire, the battle out there?"
"And more. The fertilizer storage area was destroyed. The replicators only produce it at a steady rate, and we had been stockpiling it in anticipation of starting a new growing season. We knew that many workers were available at the location where your people had appeared."
"More slaves for the taking," Stanislava blurted out.
Teklensho ignored that, adding, "For the first time, we had the opportunity to expand the food production. We had good seeds, and abundant fertilizer, and perhaps knowledge that could help us repair the machinery here, like that water extraction pump. The leadership authorized a second raid, a more comprehensive one. It was a risk, because it removed the guards and the warriors, but upto now, your people were docile. We took the chance."
Matsubara just stood there, while the archaeologist was offering the comments. "Your people blew it," Stanislava said.
"Based on the first raid, we did not expect resistance. We encountered minor resistance the first time and neutralized it." Matsubara remembered clearly the first raid and the "minor resistance," since she played a part in it. What was surprising was that none of the Dorans seemed to recognize her as the one who fired the phaser set at a high setting at someone coming at her. "Past history told us that we would be expecting less resistance the second time. The opposite happened. The transit station was defended. There were forcefields in place. The defenders had high-powered directed-energy weapons, and protective devices. They were like you, and like him." He pointed to Kayaha as he said those words.
"The Odonans and the humans might've linked up," Matsubara speculated.
"We had never encountered such a thing. His people had these devices, a weapon mounted on the arm, cables all around, this visor, and could see through the smoke bombs that were laid down, and they had devices that could stun everybody in a vehicle segment."
Matsubara and Stanislava exchanged glances, and said, "Odonan shock troops."
"Odonan what?" Kayaha spoke up. "What are you talking about?"
Matsubara answered, "They're Odonan ground forces, using all the technology your people have developed, like weapons that can be aimed by sight and fired with a thought, forcefield belts, visors with holographic displays, the works."
"I've never heard of such a thing."
"Maybe not sixty-one years ago, but there's a war going on, remember?" Facing Teklensho again, the science officer continued, "That means only one thing. Captain Thorpe brought a ship across. It might be the Odonan ship that was on its way to Charamand, or maybe a part of the Athena, at least the lander."
"You are sure about that?" Kayaha asked.
"I can't imagine that a group of Odonan soldiers and security officers and the like from my ship would have gotten here the same way we did. It had to be a ship. It's the only way. I know how the captain thinks, and he'd do that. After he heard about the first raid, he would make sure that there's no chance a second raid would be met by nothing less than what the Dorans faced. He would make sure that the defeat would be total."
"How bad was it?" Kayaha asked.
"I am not sure, but I heard a story that at least fifty never made it back."
"Oh man," Matsubara remarked. "How many would've gone?"
"Maybe a hundred, a hundred and twenty."
"Were they all killed, or stunned?"
"I'm not sure, maybe both, some stunned, some killed."
Kayaha added, "If anybody survived, and if it is the Odonan ship that came through, they surely would use the heliograph and learn everything about this place."
"What's a heliograph?" Teklensho asked.
"It's a device that reads minds," the Odonan answered.
"Torture device?"
"Not at all. Torture is a waste of time when you want information. The device scans one's mind, and uses powerful algorithms to decode how information is stored in the brain. Once it has that information, every memory, every piece of knowledge and information, becomes readable. The person can't stop it, and doesn't feel a thing."
"If this is so, then would your people use this information to come here and attack again?"
Matsubara spoke up, saying, "I can't say anything about attacking again, but I'm sure they will come to rescue us. That's definite. They might also do something that would convince you to turn on the outbound function so that we can go home."
"The leadership would never listen," Teklensho said. "They have too much pride. As long as some of us are alive, we will resist. It is what they will us to do. We suffered today. We lost men in the failed raid, and then we lost more in the rebellion. We lost the fertilizer, the food stores and the seed reserves, all destroyed. All we have are the crops in the field, and only a handful of people to tend them. People could starve in the next season. Why did this happen? It was my understanding that you had command authority."
"Only over Ensign Warner, and he decided to ignore my command authority. I had no say over the others. In fact, they accused me of being a collaborator, although I do not know why."
"You could've stopped them."
Matsubara felt a little anger rise in her. She was picturing the death of Ensign Warner, and the other Adamsburg people and even the Sikarians. She was picturing what would have happened at the other end if the captain had not come through with the ship, the security officers and the Odonan shock troops and all their advanced weaponry. Then she spoke, saying, "No, I could not stop them. You see, what your people are doing here is wrong. What are we, really? We're slaves here. We're being worked to premature deaths here because we don't have foods and nutrients vital to our survival, but you don't care. As long as you have food, and don't have to work the land yourselves, you're okay."
"That's a dangerous attitude to have."
"Is it? Slaves rebel. In the history of my people, we've had periods with slavery. The common denominator is that slaves rebel. They attempt to flee. Others rise to their oppression and attack the slaveholders. Now, our society is against slavery. In the galaxy right now, we're fighting for our freedom against another race that believes we should be, in essence, enslaved. That's us, the way we are. We're used to freedom. We fight for freedom, and we'll die if necessary for freedom."
"But you did not join in the effort."
"Admittedly because I knew it was doomed, but at times, emotions take over. It's a risk you take when you raid other locations and carry off people to be slaves. I'm sure that you've had other revolts."
"Yes," Teklensho admitted, "there have been several, but none as bad as this."
"But you have a problem," Matsubara said. "From what I heard, there are no more Sikarians left at their location. You had grabbed them all, and those who are still alive will eventually die from malnutrition or something similar. You can't raid the Odonan site because of their defenses, and now, at our location, it's the same thing. I believe that there are no others on this planet. What now?"
"I do not know. That's for the leadership to decide."
"I still believe that the best option for you to find another planet to settle on, where the ground is more forgiving, the water more plentiful, and you can build a new society there without resorting to slaves."
Teklensho said, "This may be a dark day, but it is not our darkest. We will overcome this..."
* * *
Bayanhong and Thorpe got out of the turbolift, and headed towards the lander bridge. As they did, they continued their conversation. "The Dorans have been somewhat forthcoming with the information. Based on what they said, it should be possible to recover the missing crewmembers and civilians."
"You don't think they're holding anything back?" the executive officer asked.
"No," Thorpe answered, as the two reached the doors. They snapped open for them, revealing a bridge where most of the consoles were manned and most of the systems were ready. "Based on the Dorans' comments, they don't have any sort of vehicles or heavy weapons. All they have are the weapons we have seen and seized. Their only way around is the transit system."
"So it'll be safe to take most of the security officers and the Odonan troops with us?"
"I think so. Those left behind should provide adequate protection. Remember, after the Dorans suffered their defeat at the hands of the Odonans, they never went back, not even once, not even to test the defenses. I believe that the Dorans will do the same here, since they lost a lot of people and weapons."
"I hope you're right."
"I'm fairly confident," Thorpe answered.
"But ultimately, it doesn't solve our problem. We still have to get them to activate the outbound function; otherwise, we'll be spending our lives here hoping there are no further attacks."
"I know that, but one problem at a time. Lets find our people first." While Bayanhong went over to the science and sensor console, Thorpe stood in front of the captain's chair, and asked, "What's our status?"
"We're ready for departure. The engineers on the ground confirm that all the replicators and other systems are fully operational. Systems on board are ready to go."
"Very well, make sure the gangway and immediate vicinity are clear, and then retract the gangway."
Hakamura, who was on board at the tactical console while Rocha stayed behind, to take charge of the officers remaining at the site, said, "Gangway is clear. Retracting now." Just then, the console beeped, forcing the security officer to respond. "Sir, we're being contacted. It's Commander Rocha."
For a heartbeat or two, Thorpe had this fear that the Dorans had in fact come back to try again. He said, "Put it through."
"Captain," the security chief started. "Commander Takoo has just returned. Doctor Ngoo is staying behind for now. I informed the commander of what happened and what you're planning to do. She wants to come on board, in case she had information that may be useful in our attempt to activate the outbound function.
"Very well, we'll wait. However, tell her to hustle her butt over here quickly, as every minute counts."
"She knows. Remember, Odonans can run pretty quickly."
"Very well. Sal, lower that gangway again."
Thorpe just waited. When he was moving around, thinking and dealing with immediate concerns, he did not have too much time to think about what was happening with Matsubara. One thing that worried him was that the Dorans, angered at the total failure of their raid, may take out their anger on those that they had already captured. She had been in danger for a long time, and every second spent sitting here was a second more that she could be in danger, perhaps even suffering. He was almost tempted to forget about Takoo and order Ochi to lift off now. What stopped him was his fear that the crew would find out his true concerns and his true emotions. He thought mostly about Matsubara, and the others just peripherally. They were important, but not quite like the Matsubara. The civilians that were captured were just numbers and names, like the numbers and names of those who had died in combat during the war. That got numbing at times. What he focused on was what he knew, and what mattered. It was just that he could not let those ideas escape so easily, and why he had to go about this show of concern towards the others. Only when Matsubara was safe would that concern for the others be genuine. He just could not admit that, but was always worried that the crew already knew.
Finally, Hakmaura reported, "Sir, Commander Takoo is back on board."
"Have her report to the bridge, and then raise the gangway."
Seconds later, the security officer said, "Gangway is retracted and sealed. We're ready for flight."
"Ochi, take us up and out, to an equatorial orbit, and then start scanning for that crater. It's unlikely there's a large number of them."
"Aye, sir."
Rocha had several of the Adamsburg people make sure that nobody was around the lander when it was set to depart. The people, but mostly the children, just stood back and watched as a gentle humming filled the air. The lander lifted off of the ground by about five metres, but before proceeding further, it retracted its eight landing pods. Once those hatches were sealed, the ship turned to the southwest and rose rapidly in the sky, accompanied by a slight blast of wind all around. Many of the children stood up and followed the lander with their eyes, pointing at it until it was lost among the black background and the stars.
"That's strange," Bayanhong said. "We've just left the atmosphere. At six kilometres up, we passed through some kind of field, which is holding the atmosphere in."
"A forcefield?" Thorpe asked.
"I'm not sure. It's nothing I've see before, but it doesn't appear to impede our progress."
"Can we scan through it?"
Bayanhong conducted a few tests, and said, "Yes, that appears possible. The primary function of the field appears to contain the atmosphere within the planet and close to it so that at the surface is relatively normal pressure."
"How high was it?" asked the captain.
"Six kilometres above the surface."
"That would explain the strange sky," Ochi remarked.
Without an atmosphere to impede their progress, Ochi was able to turn the impulse engines on, and quickly got them to a height of one hundred kilometres. Thorpe and the others were able to look down at the planet, and saw a world that was rather unusual for one that was inhabitable. It did not have the typical appearance of a class-M world, as this planet was a brownish-gray, with some purplish-gray highlands and some lighter gray lowland regions. This world had no surface water and no clouds. It made Thorpe wonder about heat transport, weather and other functions of the atmosphere designed to more evenly distribute solar radiation. The star itself was rather ordinary, although its spectral class was a couple of levels below what its composition and size suggested it should be. The star was also embedded in some kind of cluster, as from orbit, they could see clearly a hundred thousand stars all around. The Milky Way galaxy would be visible too, had the windows been pointing in the right direction.
"So," Takoo started, "how does it feel to command the first Federation starship in the Small Magellanic Cloud?"
"Well, I guess I'd feel a little bit better if I knew how I'm getting back. Taking the direct route home doesn't seem like a plan to me."
"Who do you think built this place?" Hakamura said. "We figure it is some kind of hub for a galactic transport system, but I still wonder about the race. I wonder if there's anything known about them."
Takoo answered, "After two and a half million years, by all estimates, I don't think there's anything known about them anymore. They built something that they will be remembered by, however."
"Of course."
The Odonan leaned closer to the captain, and said, "Sir, I've been talking to the Odonans. They had something that they were planning to use should the Dorans threaten them again, a toxin which would devastate their food crops."
"I've heard of that."
"I've got the formula. It can be replicated."
"I see," Thorpe said, just a touch nervously. The last thing he wanted to do was to actually use this.
"Just in case we need it."
"I know."
Ochi spoke up, seemingly to break that conversation, and said, "Sir, we're at one hundred kilometres."
"Very well, begin a powered orbit. Bayanhong, comprehensive scans, including topography. Lets see if we can find this crater, and any other lifeforms that may be trapped here. Fortunately, we do know how Dorans scan, but there might be other unknown races here."
"Beginning scanning routines."
Almost immediately, the topographic map started to appear on a secondary screen, showing a band of longitude at a time, and defining the prime meridian as the first band scanned. Without an actual ocean, the mapping program arbitrarily decided what the mean level would be, at least tentatively, so the map that appeared looked like it contained water, as levels below the mean were shown in shades of blue, while levels above were in the familiar greens, yellows and browns. What struck Thorpe as he looked at the map unfold was how flat the land was. At best, this world had rolling hills, and nothing like valleys, either carved by water or rift valleys. It did have a few impact craters, including a couple that were five to ten kilometres across. About halfway around the planet, and located in the southern hemisphere-with the northern hemisphere defined by planetary rotation-they found the big crater, almost a hundred and twenty-five kilometres across. Thorpe was curious by this crater, but he had the lander complete the one orbit in case there was more than one. As it turned out, there was not.
"Helm, take us back to a position over that large crater," the captain ordered.
"Aye," replied the helmsman, as she made the adjustments to the controls.
"Bayanhong?"
"Sir, I detected no lifesigns, not ours, not the Odonans and not the others. I believe that there might be something interfering with the sensors, perhaps something related to the on-going problem we have had with sensors penetrating the material. Sensors did detect over a hundred thousand structures similar to one we appeared in, and a much larger one in the central crater."
"Then it really is a hundred thousand?" Hakamura asked. "They must be everywhere."
"Not necessarily. The radius of the planet is an Earth-like six thousand, six hundred and fourty kilometres. Without oceans, that gives a surface area of fifty-five point four million square kilometres, so there is one of these structures for every five thousand square kilometres or so. There's lots of room here."
"It just seems like so many, especially in the heyday, when ships would be coming and going on a regular basis. They must've had some sophisticated control systems here."
"But nothing at all is in orbit," Bayanhong said.
"Maybe nothing survived this long."
Ochi reported, "Sir, we're over the big crater now." Thorpe did look out the windows, and saw that the big crater was currently hidden by the shadow of the planet. It was night down there.
Bayanhong, without being asked, began to run a second series of scans on the crater and the immediate surroundings. "I'm getting some interesting readings. Something is blocking lifesign scans and the like, but the infrared is showing something. Check out this light-enhanced image." She transferred the image she was looking at to the main screen on the bridge. It showed the centre of the crater in real but enhanced light, and what they saw were what looked like hot spots and streamers of smoke coming off of structures located in the open area between the two main sections of the facility. The structure was actually built close to the central spire in the crater.
"It must've been a fire of some kind," Takoo remarked.
"A rather large fire," Bayanhong said. "Look at this." She changed the image on the screen. Now they were looking at an outline trace of the structures in the centre, and the bands of red and pink and white were quite extensive. "It must've burned through quite a bit. See on the lower left there, that structure was ruptured. I'd say an explosion started there and spread. The white areas indicate where the flames are still burning."
"What caused that?" Takoo asked.
"I do not know," Bayanhong replied.
"You're getting all of this data."
"This is all visual data. The sensors cannot penetrate to the surface. I believe there's some kind of field interfering with them, but I'm not exactly sure. It looks unoccupied, and yet, I don't believe it is."
Thorpe was fixed on the evidence of the fire, and the knowledge that this was almost certainly the location that Matsubara went to. Was she responsible, to some degree, for that explosion and fire? Was she still there, perhaps trapped, perhaps injured? He hated to think what might be happening down there and what risk she was facing. He felt this certain level of impatience grow inside him. He had to know. He had to find out, and yet he had to hold this within him.
"Ochi, take us down, and through that atmospheric barrier. Maybe we can get better scans on the other side of that, and perhaps we can find the source of the interference."
"Are we landing?"
"Not at the present time, but be prepared for it," the captain started. "I just want to get more data first. Now, the captured Dorans said that they had no heavy weapons here and no aircraft, but lets not take chances. Hakamura, go to yellow alert and raise the shields."
"Aye, sir," the assistant chief of security answered, even as he was carrying out the order.
"Given our difficulties with sensor readings, I don't think we can transport to the surface, so we might have to land. We may have to deal with the Dorans too, because they do control the method by which we can return home."
Ochi had no trouble guiding the lander back down to where the field containing the atmosphere swept over the crater and maintained its shape. While she flew, Bayanhong continued to scan, and had more to report. "I'd say that the central spire contains the power source for the whole planet, and also the remote terminals scattered all over the galaxy. I'm not exactly sure what it contains, but it is producing and distributing enough power that the Dorans here can't hide it. I'd also hazard to guess that the control centre is also in the spire. The power fluxes I'm reading are consistent with the power transfers between the central station and all the others.
"Now approaching the atmospheric containment field."
"Any aircraft?"
"Negative," Bayanhong reported.
* * *
"In a way," Teklensho continued, "I can see your point. There is something of a virtue in self-reliance, and yet it is not something we were familiar with. In our past, before we were exiled to this planet, we would make sure we could acquire our own resources and grow our own food, but being here, after being... modified, it is difficult for us."
Matsubara answered, "You seemed to have acquired a lot of knowledge here on these crops."
"Yes, that's true."
"It is too bad that your people did not concentrate more on working with those crops, developing them and perfecting them. You likely would've progressed more as a culture had you done that, instead of grabbing other people."
"You must remember that we were warriors, and our culture was based on that. It's our code of honour not to lower ourselves to that level unless there is no alternative."
"Like now."
Before the discussion could continue-and Matsubara was very much aware that she was merely taking up time here as she faced a very uncertain next couple of hours-the door to the room opened. Another of the shabbily-dressed, shaggy-haired Dorans entered the room. He spoke in whispers to Teklensho, and then left. Teklensho turned back to face Matsubara and said, "A situation is developing. I have been asked to bring you to the control centre. You have earned our trust in the sense that you will not do something rash or stupid, and I hope that that trust will continue. The other two will remain here under guard."
"Very well," the science officer said.
Stanislava faced Matsubara, and asked, "Ma'am, is it safe to go? You don't know what they could do to you there."
"No, I don't. On the other hand, I've got a good idea what this 'situation' might be."
"The ship?"
"Yeah."
* * *
"We're inside the atmosphere again," Ochi remarked. The passage of the lander through the field that contained the atmosphere went by virtually unnoticed by those on the bridge, although the various displays did indicate the effect of the sudden appearance of full atmospheric pressure on the forward progress of the lander.
Thorpe asked, "Can we get better scans?"
"Not really," Bayanhong replied immediately. "The same fields in the metals of the structures that blocked sensors back at our arrival point are also here. I can't scan into the buildings. Visually, it appears that the flames are still present, and that nobody on the ground has any means of stopping them. Sensors also indicate what looks like crops, poorly laid out, and with some crude irrigation, surrounds the outside of the perimeter of the structure."
"Lifesigns?"
"Scanning continuously for them, but any against or inside the structures can't be detected... wait, picking up two new, human."
Thorpe suddenly had a decision to make. There was a chance, slim for sure, that one of them would be Matsubara, but even if neither were, they should provide information. "Bayanhong, confirm that there are no weapons on the surface that can threaten us."
"As far as I can tell, there are no heavy weapons here, no aircraft, nothing."
"Okay." The captain paused, thinking again.
The acting science officer added, "Now picking up two others, chasing them. They read as Doran, and now a fifth, unknown race."
"Lieutenant Hakamura, drop the shields just long enough to beam up the two humans."
"And the unknown?" asked Takoo.
"I can't take the chance yet. Hakamura, lower the shields, and beam up the two humans."
"Understood." Several seconds later, during which time the security officer worked the controls and the crew held their breaths, aware that they were low enough that a well-placed hit by even a hand weapon could do some damage, Hakamura finally said, "They're on board, and the shields are back up."
Before the captain could say a word, the small console off to his left beeped. He tapped at the "receive" icon and said, "Bridge."
"Sir, this is the transporter room. We beamed on board two humans, likely Adamsburg civilians, armed with weapons similar to what the Dorans have."
"Are they hostile?"
"I'm... not sure. I've informed them that they are on the Athena lander, but they appear unhappy."
Thorpe said, "Hakamura, see to it that the two are disarmed, and then I want them brought to the bridge. I want to know what's going on down there."
"Understood..."
* * *
Somewhat to her surprise, Matsubara was not escorted to the spire, but rather to a location within the structure. She was taken onto a lift, but the ride was short, and led to a long, dimly-lit corridor. She saw compartments that were manned by armed Dorans, who had the advantage of their forcefield-protected cover. The corridor walls and the supporting structures seemed to be thick and reinforced, making the approach to the control centre difficult. At the end of the corridor were the first of three sets of heavy doors, and at each one, Teklensho had to place a bracelet he was wearing-and which Matsubara had not noticed before-against a sensor. After several seconds, the reader flashed a red light and beeped, allowing the door to open. He could not proceed to the next door until the first one had closed. Matsubara looked around, and saw the weapon panels and emplacements, and increasingly came to the conclusion that an assault along this corridor would be virtually impossible. The last door was actually a thick double door, and Teklensho reminded Matsubara to watch the gap in the floor. It was as if the entire control centre complex was on some kind of platform or track that could allow it to be retracted into the ground for protection.
Beyond that thick door was yet another, just a couple of metres in front of them. When Teklensho held his bracelet against that sensor reader, it did not open the door. Instead, it opened a communications link, as the man said, "I am Teklensho. I have been asked to escort one of the captives, Damiko Matsubara, to the control centre. I need you to open the door."
If anybody heard them, they did not reply. Several seconds passed, and Matsubara asked, "Do you think they heard?"
"They likely did. They're using the time to make sure nothing sensitive or important is left on any of the displays."
"I see."
While they waited, Teklensho looked forward, and finally said, "At dinner today, I was discussing this with my wife. She came from a family line that believed in much the same thing you have said, that we should use the outbound abilities to head to another planet, and to begin a life of our own. Some of her ancestors apparently tried to do the same thing, but said that it should be possible for the warrior classes to remain here, but to have the others head to the planet and develop their society there. The leadership would have none of it."
"Why?"
"Because they would fear that the people sent away would one day return, and demand to rule."
"It's really about the ruling elite, isn't it?" Matsubara asked. "Is that group hereditary, or can anybody who shows talent or leadership join?"
"It is a combination of both. It is mostly hereditary, but capable individuals are allowed to join, and the weak are expelled from the group. They make the decisions on what is best and right for us. We don't always agree, but when the decisions are made, we are expected to follow."
"But what do you personally believe?"
"I believe that we should have had that settlement on the other world," the man replied. "It would be a backup. After this disaster, perhaps the others might see this approach. We simply can't be confined to this one location."
Matsubara was beginning to think that she was making some progress. She wondered if the people of Charamand would not mind having a group of Dorans living on a section of that planet, and if the governor did not mind having a functioning intergalactic transporter on her planet. Imagine the science that could be done on this world, Matsubara thought.
The doors finally opened, surprising them, and the two walked into the Doran command centre. It was a round room, and dominated by a large, round table in which all but a narrow rim was covered by a glass surface that glowed palely. Matsubara suspected that it was some kind of holographic projector. Around the rim of the table were the control consoles, and most of those consisted of knobs and fixed buttons. The controls looked to have been well-used, and even repaired and rebuilt over time. The controls and the housing had been painted, which was now chipping, and written on the new paint were crude lettering in what she suspected was the Dorans' own language. Most of the consoles were manned, and by women, the human noticed. The walls around the circular room had display consoles, including a more complex and detailed version of the map that Matsubara had first seen in the transit station. The detail and the information on that display could take hours to simply go over, Matsubara thought. To help them, the Dorans had attached pieces of a paper-like material near certain symbols, with their own writing on them. The language on the display was clearly quite different from the Dorans' writing. Other displays in the room were not active.
Sitting at the far side of the table were three older Doran women, their hair unusually bushy and light-coloured, and though their skin was somewhat wrinkled and splotched in darker blues, they seemed fit and strong. To Teklensho, Matsubara asked, "You're telling me that the leadership among your people is women?"
"Yes," the man said. "Only the women possess the intellect necessary to operate the controls, and only women are capable of being educated in the ways of this technology."
"Your men can't be?"
"They have tried, but they can never grasp the concept of the technology."
"So they become warriors instead?"
"Yes," Teklensho replied. The idea that Doran society might be matriarchal seemed at odds with what the man had said earlier about his own family, unless what he was trying to say was that only those men who had impressed the women with their abilities as warriors was worthy of getting a mate. Those men who could not demonstrate aptitude in battle were undeserving of passing their genes on. They might have been the field workers when the warriors could find no captive populations to raid.
The woman who sat in the middle of the group of three stood up, and gestured for Teklensho to guide Matsubara to a position close to where the three sat. Then she gestured for him to move off, perhaps aware of the private conversations that had occurred between the two. She did not approach Matsubara, and did not even speak to her. Instead, the older Doran woman appeared to be addressing the table. "You appear to be the leader among your group. Others have been observed to listen to you and follow your orders."
"Not really," Matsubara answered. "If they had listened, this uprising would never have occurred."
"And why would you have stopped it?"
"Because it was doomed to fail."
"And it did fail," the Doran woman said. "However, it failed at a great cost." Now, Matsubara said, she was about to receive her punishment. The Dorans might have decided that she was the leader of her group of captives, and since she could not control them, she was ultimately responsible for them. She would be punished for them. Oddly, this thought did not unnerve her too much. In a subtle gesture, she made sure that the forcefield belt was turned on, and she heard the humming sound in her ears. On the other hand, she thought it was unlikely that they would execute her here. "Now, we have a complication. History does not record another occurrence of this, but a vessel has appeared in our sky." The woman made a gesture to one of the operators, who pushed a few of the buttons. The central part of the table was in fact a holographic display. What appeared was a relatively detailed outline of the crater, looking almost as it would if Matsubara was in an aircraft looking down upon it. What she noticed was a very tiny shape hovering near the central spire and the structures around it. The operator zoomed in onto that object, until it was shown in such detail that Matsubara was absolutely certain what it was. "Do you recognize this vessel?"
"Yes," Matsubara replied softly.
"And it is?"
"It is the lander of the starship that I serve on."
"The lander?"
"A secondary ship attached to the main ship, since the main ship is too large to land. The smaller ship contains all the abilities of the larger ship, but can land."
"In essence," the Doran woman continued, "this vessel made the transit from the galaxy to our world?"
"Yes."
"Is it a danger to us?"
"That is possible," Matsubara remarked, still sounding calm. She was thinking fast, thinking about how she could use the appearance of the lander to her advantage.
"What do you mean?"
"The danger it represents depends on what the person in command has learned, about what has happened to the captives, what has happened to me, and what are the chances of the lander and its crew getting back to the galaxy."
Again, the woman asked, "What do you mean?"
"It is possible that if the outbound function on this technology is not activated, the ship might, out of anger or spite, simply destroy everything." That was a weird thing for her to say, Matsubara realized, since she knew that if Captain Thorpe made the decision to bring the lander here, he was prepared for the possibility that they might never get back home. He did not seem to be the type of person who would attack simply out of spite, but the Dorans did not know that. She also had to reflect on the idea that she was standing in the room where they could turn on the outbound function. All it took was to press a few buttons and turn a few knobs, and that gateway Turokuot spent so much time investigating would open.
"How can we defeat it?"
"Without knowing what kind of technology you have here, or what weapons you have at your disposal, I cannot say."
The leader sat down again, and started to discuss among themselves in hushed voices, and what words they were using that Matsubara could hear were not being translated. It was as if they were speaking a different language. She had to wonder what they were scheming to do. Finally, Matsubara spoke up, asking, "Would it be possible to contact that ship?"
"No," the leader said sharply.
