Commander Winters looked at Nick as if he had lost his mind. The commander started to say something. “No,” Nick interrupted. “Hear me out. The spacecraft also stopped here because it needed some repairs. At one time we thought it might have found your missile. That’s partially how we got involved in the first place. We didn’t know about the creatures in the cradle. So we were trying to help. One of the things the aliens needed for their repairs was gold. You see, they only had three days—”
“Jesus K. Christ!” Winters shouted at Nick. “Do you really expect me to believe this crap? This is the looniest, most farfetched story I have ever heard in my entire life. You’re nuts. Cradles, aliens who need gold for repairs… I suppose next you’ll be telling me that they are six feet tall and look like carrots—” “And have four vertical slits in their faces?” Nick added.
Winters glanced around. “You told him?” he said to Lieutenant Ramirez. Ramirez shook his head back and forth.
“No,” Nick continued abruptly as the commander looked completely confused. “The carrot thing wasn’t an alien, at least not one of the superaliens who made the ship. The carrot was a holographic projection…”
The perplexed Commander Winters waved his hands.” I’m not listening to any more of this nonsense, Williams. At least not here. What I want to know is what you and your friends know about the location of the missile. Now will you come with us over to our boat of your own free will, or do we have to tie you up?”
At that moment, six feet above them, a ten-legged, black, spiderlike creature with a body about four inches in diameter walked unnoticed to the edge of the canopy. It extended three antennae in their direction and then leaped off the side, landing on the back of Lieutenant Ramirez’ neck. “Aieee,” screamed the lieutenant during the pause in the conversation. He fell down on his knees behind Nick and grasped at the black thing that was trying to take a sample chunk out of his neck. For a second nobody moved. Then Nick grabbed a large pair of pliers from the counter and thwacked the black thing once, twice, and even a third time before it released its grip on Ramirez’ neck.
All four men watched it fall to the deck, scuttle rapidly over to the cradle that Commander Winters had put down so that he could assist Ramirez, shrink its size by a factor of ten, and disappear into the cradle through the soft gooey opening on the top of the sphere. Within seconds the goo hardened and all the external surfaces of the cradle were again rigid.
Winters was flabbergasted. Ramirez crossed himself. The seaman looked as if he were about to faint. “I swear to you that my story is true, Commander,” Nick said calmly. “All you have to do is come down with me and see for yourself. I left my diving gear down there so that I could hurry up here to retrieve this thing. We can go together with my last working tank and share the air supply.”
Winters’ head was spinning. The ten-legged spider was the straw that broke the camel’s back. He felt that he had now entered the Twilight Zone. I have never seen or heard anything even remotely like this before in my life, Winters thought. And only half an hour ago I had wild hallucinations with musical accompaniment. Maybe I am the one losing touch with reality. Lieutenant Ramirez was still on his knees. It looked as if he were praying. Or maybe this is finally my sign from God.
“All right, Williams,” the commander was surprised to hear himself say. “I’ll go with you. But my men will wait here on your boat for our return.”
Nick picked up the trident and raced around the canopy to prepare the diving equipment.
It took Carol and Troy a few seconds to react to Nick’s abrupt departure. “That was strange,” Carol said finally. “What do you suppose he forgot?”
“I have no idea,” Troy shrugged. “But I hope he hurries back. I don’t think it’s very long until launch. And I’m sure they will throw us out before then.”
Carol thought for a moment and then turned back to look at the cylinder. “You know, Troy, those golden things are exactly like the trident on the outside. Did you say—”
“I didn’t answer you before, angel,” Troy interrupted. “But yes, you’re right. It is the same material. I hadn’t realized until we came down here today that what we picked up on that first dive was the seed package for Earth. They may have tried to tell me before; maybe I just didn’t understand them.”
Carol was fascinated. She walked over and put her face against the cylinder wall. It felt more like glass than plastic. “So maybe I was right when I thought it was heavier and thicker…” she said, as much to herself as to Troy. “And inside that trident are seeds for better plants and animals?” Troy nodded his head in response.
There was now some motion inside the cylinder. The thin membranes separating the subvolumes were growing what appeared to be guidewires that were wrapping themselves around the individual golden objects. Carol reloaded her camera with a new disc and ran around the outside of the cylinder, stopping in the best positions to photograph the process. Troy looked down at his bracelet. “There’s no doubt about it, angel. These ETs are definitely preparing to launch. Maybe we should go.”
’We’ll wait as long as we can,” Carol shouted from across the room. “These photographs will he priceless.” They both could now hear weird noises behind the walls. The noises were not loud, but they were distracting because they were erratic and so totally alien. Troy paced nervously as he listened to the gamut of sounds. Carol walked over beside him. “Besides,” she said, “Nick asked us to wait for him.”
“That’s great,” Troy answered, “as long as they wait as well.” He seemed uncharacteristically nervous. “I don’t want to be onboard when these guys leave the Earth.”
“Hey there, Mr. Jefferson,” Carol said, you are supposed to he the calm one. Relax. You just said yourself that you think they’ll throw us out before they leave.” She paused and looked searchingly at Troy. “What do you know that I don’t?”
Troy turned away from her and started walking toward the exit. Carol ran after him and grabbed his arm. “What is it, Troy?” she said. “What’s wrong?”
“Look, angel,” he replied, not looking directly at her, “I just figured it out myself a minute ago. And I’m still not sure what it means. I hope I haven’t made a terrible—”
“What are you talking about?” she interrupted him. “You’re not making any sense.”
“The Earth package,” he blurted out. “It has human seeds in it too. Along with the trees and insects and grasses and birds.”
Carol stood facing Troy, trying to understand what was bothering him so much. “When they came here a long long time ago,” he said, his face wrinkled with concern, “they took specimens of the different species and returned them to their home world. Where they were improved by genetic engineering and prepared for their eventual return to the Earth. Some of those specimens were human beings.”
Carol’s heart quickened as she realized what Troy was telling her. So that’s it, she said to herself. There are superhumans inside that package we’ve found. Not just better flowers and better bugs, but better people as well. But unlike Troy, Carol’s immediate reaction was not fear. She was overwhelmed by curiosity.
“Can I see them?” she asked excitedly. Troy didn’t understand. “The superhumans, or whatever you want to call them… ,” she continued, “can I see them?”
Troy shook his head. “They’re just tiny zygotes, angel. More than a billion would fit in your hand. You wouldn’t be able to see anything.”