“I don’t know, Clarissa,” the Doktor replied. He unexpectedly reached down, grabbed the front of Joshua’s shirt, and hauled him to his feet.
“This brat is from the Family!”
“The Family!” Clarissa repeated, and there were murmurs among the creatures.
Joshua noticed some soldiers had joined the group.
“Talk to me, boy!” the Doktor snapped. “I know who you are. We haven’t spied on your accursed Family for years for nothing! Talk to me!”
“That’s why I’m here,” Joshua said.
“What?” The Doktor released Joshua, studying him.
“I came to talk with you,” Joshua explained.
The Doktor looked at Thor. “What are you waiting for? I told you to send out a patrol!”
Thor cringed and hurried away.
“It isn’t necessary,” Joshua said. “I’m alone.”
“So you say.” The Doktor began stroking his pointed chin with his right hand. “Isn’t this an interesting development, Clarissa? First, I receive a report Lynx is in Catlow. And now, enroute to smash that furry lowlife into the dust, we stumble across Joshua here, one of the Family, an Empath if my memory serves. How very interesting!”
“I came alone to talk with you,” Joshua assured him.
“What could we possibly have to talk about?” the Doktor said arrogantly.
“Peace.”
The Doktor’s eyes seemed to blaze fire. “Do you take me for a buffoon, boy? Would you have me believe you traveled all this distance merely to converse with me concerning peace?”
“Yes.”
The Doktor fell silent, his features inscrutable.
No one else moved or spoke.
“I believe you, Joshua,” the Doktor said at last. “Very well. You shall be granted your opportunity to present your case.” He draped his right arm over Joshua’s slim shoulders and led him away from the others. When they were 20 feet from Clarissa and the rest, he stopped and crossed his arms, a slight grin tugging at the corners of his thin mouth. “Proceed.”
“Right here?” Joshua objected. “I was hoping we could relax, break bread together, and get to know one another.”
“Regrettably, Joshua, I am pressed for time. I must complete my business in Catlow promptly and travel to Denver to oversee the construction of my new headquarters.” The Doktor paused. “I assume you’re aware of what Lynx did in Cheyenne?”
“I know he destroyed your headquarters,” Joshua admitted. “It was called the Biological Center, wasn’t it?”
The Doktor frowned. “Yes. My life’s work. All of my equipment and notes. The labor of a century, gone.” He snapped his fingers. “Just like that! All thanks to Lynx and…” He stopped, as if he couldn’t recall the name he wanted.
“Yama,” Joshua finished for him.
“Yama, yes.” The Doktor grinned. “Thank you.”
“But you don’t need to continue on to Catlow,” Joshua mentioned.
“I don’t?”
“No. Turn back, now, before it’s too late. We can establish a truce, right here and now, and end all of this bloodshed and violence. Don’t you see?”
Joshua said, gesturing with enthusiasm. “The future is in your hands! War or peace, it’s all up to you. Armageddon or a millennium of tranquility.
Why should we continue to fight, when we could work together in harmony toward the betterment of both our peoples?”
“Tell me, Joshua,” the Doktor urged, “does Plato know you’re here?”
“No one does,” Joshua divulged. “I told you, I came alone.”
“Remarkable.”
“Plato wouldn’t have let me come,” Joshua said. “His paranoia would have gotten the better of him.”
“Plato isn’t too fond of me, is he?” the Doktor inquired.
“Plato believes you are his enemy,” Joshua elaborated. “He thinks the only way to deal with you is with brute force.”
“And what do you think of me?”
“I think of you the same as I do of all men and women,” Joshua stated.
“All of us are children of the Divine Creator. We are all brothers and sisters, in a spiritual sense. We must learn to love one another, or our world is doomed. Didn’t World War Three teach us anything? Here we are, on the verge of another war! When will we learn our lesson? How long must violence be the norm instead of brotherhood? Why can’t humankind see the light?”
The Doktor was staring off into space. “Do you really believe peace on earth is possible?”
“Of course!” Joshua exclaimed, excited, sensing victory. “All it takes is two people, two sides, two nations, whatever, reaching out in friendship, extending a helping hand to one another in place of mistrust and animosity.” He paused. “We could do it! The Family and the Civilized Zone! We could sign a peace treaty and end all this needless suffering and misery. Don’t you agree?”
The Doktor didn’t respond.
“Don’t you agree?” Joshua goaded him.
“No.” The Doktor sighed, a protracted, peculiarly sad sound, and faced Joshua. When he spoke his voice was softer, tinged with regret. “No, I don’t. While I admire your youthful idealism, and I honestly do, I find considerable fault with your wisdom. You see, Joshua, I was an idealist once. Decades ago. Over one hundred years ago, to be precise. I took a long, hard look at this paltry planet of ours, and I came to many of the same conclusions you did. I saw a world embroiled in petty conflicts, where hatred was the rule and greed the motivating factor in civilization—”
“We can change all that—” Joshua began.
The Doktor held up his left hand for silence. “I thought the same thing at your age. I wanted the nations of the world to desist with their foolish notions of national sovereignty. This is one planet and we all one people.
But I knew the various Governments would never willingly unite. So I reached one of the major decisions in my life. I decided to devote my recognized intellect to insuring that one nation could dominate all the others, thereby ending the ceaseless bickerings and wars for all time. My scientific genius was responsible for the regenerating chemical clouds and resultant mutates, as you call them. I—“
“What?” Joshua interrupted, astonished. “You’re responsible for the mutates?”
“Unintentionally,” the Doktor replied. “I was developing a new form of chemical warfare, a gaseous mixture capable of dissolving human tissue and bone. The acidic agents are specifically attracted to the human metabolism. Mutates result because the complicated chemical elements in the clouds do not leech successfully on animal metabolisms. Their physiology goes haywire instead. I never intended to use the gas in this country. Samuel the First insisted on doing so after the war, as a means of further disrupting outlying communities and distracting them from the business of restablishing a new Government.”
“You… unleashed… the clouds?”
“One of the least of my accomplishments,” the Doktor stated. “My masterpiece is my work in genetic engineering. I, and I alone, discovered the technique for editing the genetic instructions encoded in the chemical structure of molecules of DNA. My original purpose was to produce a master race of perfect humans.” He glanced behind him at the clustered creatures. “Obviously, I haven’t quite attained my goal, but I am close. At least, I was, until my laboratories were destroyed.” His features clouded.
Joshua could only gawk, stupefied.
“Nothing ever works out quite the way we expect it to, does it?” the Doktor went on. “Did I tell you I constructed the very first thermo? A potent, portable thermonuclear device. I was certain they would guarantee that we won the war. I was wrong.”
Joshua felt a chill creep into his body.
The Doktor looked at Joshua. “Do you have any idea how old I am?”
“Plato told me you are one hundred and twenty-seven years old,” Joshua answered.