Something hit me painfully in the leg. It bent down and saw it was the Diamond Backed Turtle.
“How’d it get out here?” I asked Zeleny. “I did lock it in the safe.”
“It made such a racket banging against the sides of the safe I took pity on it.” Zeleny said. “And what re those strange flowers you’ve brought?”
“Mirror flowers.” I answered.
Zeleny walked up to the bouquet and asked again,
“Mirrors?”
“That’s right.”
“Well I’m looking into one now, and it’s not reflecting me at all.” He said.
I turned and realized that Zeleny was competely correct; the mirrored centers of the flowers were reflecting not Zeleny, but Alice. And behind her head I could see the little figures of me and Poloskov. And we were not standing here in the crew’s lounge, but on the circular meadow.
“Now this is very interesting.” I said. “It means these flowers, while they are alive, record everything they reflect, as though they were photographing it.”
“Tuk, tuk, tuk!” The sound shot through the Crew’s Lounge. Poloskov jumped up from the divan and ran to the port.
On the other side of the port sat the Blabberyap bird, pecking at the plast with its beak in order to attract our attention.
“Just think, a bird smart enough to come home to roost.” I said. “I’ll let you in now.”
The blabberyap’s beak opened wide. He said someting, but we could hear nothning through the walls of the ship.
When I ran over to the airlock and opened it, the Blabberyap bird was already waiting for me. He flew into the ship and headed directly for the Crew’s Lounge. I followed after down the corridor. The bird flew uncertainly, then landed on the floor and walked on foot, limping. Poloskov opened the door to the Crew’s Lounge and, on seeing the bird, said:
“Come to gloat over the fine mess you’ve gotten us all into?”
The Blabberyap answered, if not to the point:
“‘I can’t hold out much longer! Is help coming soon?’“
“It’s the voice of the Second Captain.” Alice said. “He’s seen the Second Captain.”
“Alice,” I said, “for all we know the Second Captain may very well have said these words four years ago. You know what a good memory the Blabberyap bird has?”
“No,” Alice said, “he’s seen the Second Captain. We have to go back to the field.”
“No, not right now.” Poloskov answered. “Even my feet are killing me. And you, Alice, you’re ten times more exhausted. And anyway, the Captain wasn’t in the spot where we were. If there had been even a single nut or bolt, even a single screw within a few dozen meters surrounding us the metal detectors would have found it.”
“It only means we have to go a few dozen meters to one side.” Alice said insistently. “And if you’re not going, I’ll go alone.”
“Not before you get a good night’s sleep.” I said sternly. “And then we’re all going back there. We’ve promised that we won’t depart from this planet until we find the Captain, or until we’re convinced that he isn’t here.”
Chapter Seventeen
We Look Into The Past
Living on that planet would have been anything but easy. When we awoke in the morning our ship’s clocks showed seven in the morning, and beyond the ports it was growing dark and the short night had begun again. While we breakfasted the night passed and morning began.
The bright rays of the sun broke into the crew’s lounge and Alice, who had glanced into one of the mirror flowers that stood in a vase on the table, said:
“Look. I’m not here any more.”
The mirror flowers, which yesterday had reflected Alice, now showed us the familiar field where we had found them, but now the field was empty, visited by no one. While we looked into the mirror the field, in all the flowers, grew dark; twilight had come. We looked into the darkened mirrors of the flowers and I said:
“These are odd flowers flower cameras.”
A light had appeared from within the mirror. We all forgot about breakfast. None of us could tear himself away from the remarkable image. Unhurriedly, minute after minute it turned out, the flowers photographed everything that took place on the field. Now they were showing us.
“Now that is interesting. Just how long to these flowers live?” Poloskov thought aloud.
“I suppose a few days.” I answered. “Like all flowers.”
And immediately we found ourselves looking into the reflection of a small animal similar to a rabbit; it had jumped out of the bushes and hurried toward the flowers. It wasn’t yet dawn in the flower so we did not immediately realize just what was odd about the animal’s movements.
“Hey, he’s jumping with his end backwards.” Alice exclaimed.
The little rabbit-like animal really was approaching the flower with his rear-end forward. And then, having come to a stop in front of the flower, turned around and returned to the bushes in the very same odd manner.
“The movie’s broken.” Alice started to laugh. “Bunglers! Change the film!”
“No.” Poloskov said. “There’s nothing wrong with it. These flowers are not simply mirrors, they are mirror recorders. They might be able to do that if the outer layer which reflects and records grows constantly, layer after layer. Very thin layers. Millions of layers. Just one per image, and each image adds another layer to the flower. And so on. And when the flower is cut iot can no longer manufacture layers to the mirror, and they begin to decay, oe after the other, and as they decay we see what the mirror saw. Only backwards. Like an old fashioned movie fil being run backwards. Clear enough.”
“Quite possible.” I agreed. “A very interesting flower. But it’s time for us to get ready now. Let Poloskov ready for his flight with the resources sattelite and I’ll go down in thee ATV to that field and find out of there are any remains left over from the Blue Gull in the area.”
“I’m going with you Papa.” Alice said. “We can take the Blabberyap bird too.”
“All right.”
I headed down to ready the ATV and Alice remained in the Crew’s Lounge. She found watching the backward images more interesting.
“We’re ready now!” I shouted, sitting behind the wheel. “Want to get going?”
“Right away!” Alice shouted in answer. “Just a second…” and immedeatly she called me: “Papa, come up here! Right away! Before they leave.”
I made it to the steps in three jumps and ran into the Crew’s Lounge. Alice was standing beside the mirror.
“Look.” She said when she heard me enter.
All of the mirror flowers were showing one and the same image. In the middle of the field stood two men, the fat man in the leather buisiness suit and Doctor Verkhovtseff. Beyond the bushes we could see the sharp prow of a high speed starship.
The fat man and Verkhovtseff were arguing about something. Then the two of them walked out of view, backwards.
“They’re somewhere around here.” Alice said. They don’t know that the flowers have betrayed them.”
“Most likely you are right.” I answered. “But why, why?”
“Why what?”
“It must be they don’t know where the Captain is themselves. Otherwise why would they go chasing after the Blabberyap bird?”
“Maybe they have the Captain a prisoner and are afraid we’ll find out. They captured the Captain, imprisoned him, but the bird got away. And that’s what they’re afraid of.”
“But why would anyone want to keep him a captive? You’re being overly imaginative, Alice.”
“And you’re not going to do anything? You’re just going to leave him…”
“No!” I replied.. Inaction is the most feeble pursuit.
“Poloskov, Zeleny, listen. Alice and I were watching the mirror flowers and just saw the fat man and Verkhovtseff in it. That means they were here no more than a day before us. They had a high speed space ship. What do you think? Over?”