Jeffrey sniffed. “We’ll see,” he croaked.
Kepler took Jeffrey aside, asking Culla to show Jacob around. Culla led Jacob to the other side of the hemisphere to show him the machine that allowed the ship to navigate like a bathysphere in the semi-fluid plasma of the solar atmosphere. He removed several panels to show Jacob the holographic memory units.
The Stasis Generator controlled the flow of tune and space through the body of the Sunship, so that the violent tossing of the chromosphere would seem a gentle rocking to those inside. The fundamental physics of the generator was still only partly understood by the scientists of Earth, though the government insisted that it be built by human hands.
Culla’s eyes glowed and his lisping voice revealed pride in the new technologies brought to Earth by the Library.
The logic banks controlling the generator looked like a jumble of glassy filaments. Culla explained that the rods and fibers stored optical information far more densely than any previous Earth technology, and responded more quickly. Blue interference patterns ran up and down the nearest rod, as they watched, flickering packets of lambient data. It seemed to Jacob that there was something almost alive in the machine. The laser input-output swung aside under Culla’s touch and they both stared for minutes at the raw pulsing information that was the machine’s blood.
Though he must have seen the computer’s bowels hundreds of times, Culla seemed as enthralled as Jacob, meditating fixedly with those bright, unblinking eyes.
Finally, Culla replaced the cover. Jacob noticed that the E.T. looked tired. Must be working too hard, he thought. They spoke little as they walked slowly back around the dome to rejoin Jeffrey and Kepler.
Jacob listened with interest, but little comprehension, as the chimpanzee and his boss argued about some minor calibration of one of the cameras.
Jeffrey left then, claiming business on the Cavern floor, and Culla followed soon after. The two men remained for a few minutes, talking about the machinery, then Kepler motioned for Jacob to walk ahead as they made their way back around the loop.
When Jacob was about halfway around he heard a sudden commotion up ahead. Someone was shouting in anger. He tried to ignore what his eyes were telling him about the curving gravity-loop and quickened his pace. The path wasn’t meant to be taken quickly, though. For the first time he felt a confusing mixture of pulling sensations as different portions of the complicated field tugged at him.
At the top of the arc Jacob’s foot caught on a loose floor plate, scattering the plate and several bolts along the curving deck. He fought to keep his balance, but the unnerving perspective, midway around the curving path, made him stagger. By the time he made it gratefully to the hatch on the upper side of the deck, Kepler had caught up with him.
The shouting came from outside the ship.
At the base of the ramp Fagin waved his branches about in agitation. A number of base personnel ran toward LaRoque and Jeffrey, who stood locked in a wrestler’s embrace.
His face a deep red, LaRoque puffed and strained as he tried to pry Jeffrey’s hands off of his head. He made a fist and struck out to no apparent effect. The chimp screamed repeatedly and bared his teeth as he fought for a better grip to bring LaRoque’s head down to the level of his own. Neither noticed that a crowd had gathered. They ignored the arms that tried to pull them apart.
Hurrying to the bottom, Jacob saw LaRoque free one hand and reach for the camera that hung from a cord at his belt.
Jacob shoved through to the combatants. Without a pause he struck LaRoque’s grip free of the camera with the hard side of his hand and reached down with the other to grab the fur at the back of the chimpanzee’s head. He yanked back with all of his might and threw Jeffrey into the arms of Kepler and Culla.
Jeffrey struggled. The long powerful simian arms heaved against the grip of his captors. He tossed his head back and shrieked.
Jacob felt movement behind him. He swiveled and planted a palm on LaRoque’s chest as the man came rushing forward. The journalist’s feet flew out from beneath him and he landed with an “Oof!”
Jacob reached for the camera at LaRoque’s belt, just as the man grabbed for it. The cord parted with a snap. The men hauled LaRoque back as he struggled to his feet.
Jacob’s hands went up.
“Now stop it!” he shouted. He placed himself so that neither LaRoque nor Jeffrey could easily see the other. LaRoque nursed his hand, ignoring the crewmen who held his shoulders, and glared angrily.
Jeffrey still strained to get loose. Culla and Kepler held onto him tightly. Behind them Fagin whistled helplessly.
Jacob took the chimp’s face in his hands. Jeffrey snarled at him.
“Chimpanzee-Jeffrey, listen to me! I am Jacob Demwa. I am a human being. I am a supervisor with Project Uplift. I tell you now that you are behaving in an unseemly manner… you are acting like an animal!”
Jeffrey’s head jerked back as if slapped. He looked at Jacob dazedly for a moment, a snarl half formed, then the deep brown eyes unfocused. He sagged limp in the grip of Culla and Kepler.
Jacob held onto the furry head. With his other hand he stroked the ruffled fur back into place. Jeffrey shuddered.
“Now just relax,” he said gently. “Just try to collect yourself. We’ll all listen when you tell us what happened.”
Trembling, Jeffrey brought a hand to his speech display. It took him a few moments to slowly type, SORRY. He looked up at Jacob, meaning it.
“That’s fine,” Jacob said. “It takes a real man to apologize.”
Jeffrey straightened. With elaborate calmness he nodded to Kepler and to Culla. They released him and Jacob stepped back.
For all of his success in dealing with both dolphins and chimps at the Project, Jacob felt somewhat ashamed of the patronizing way in which he had spoken to Jeffrey. It had been a gamble that worked, to use Patronomy on the chimp-scientist. From what Jeffrey had said earlier, Jacob guessed that he kept a great deal of patron-esteem inside, but reserved it for some humans and not others. Jacob was glad he’d been able to tap that reserve, but not particularly proud of it.
Kepler took charge as soon as he saw that Jeffrey was calm.
“What the hell was going on here!” he shouted, glaring at LaRoque.
“The animal attacked me!” LaRoque cried. “I had just managed to conquer my fears and get out of that terrible place and I was talking to the honorable Fa-gin, when the beast leapt at me, lithe like a tiger, and I had to fight for my life!”
LIAR. HE WAS DOING SABOTAGE. I FOUND T.C. ACCESS PLATE LOOSE. FAGIN SAID THE CREEP ONLY CAME OUT WHEN HE HEARD US COMING.
“Apologies for my contradiction!” Fagin fluted. “I did not say the pejorative ‘Creep,’ I merely answered a query to state…”
“He sspent an hour in there!” Jeffrey interrupted aloud, grimacing at the effort.
Poor Fagin, Jacob thought.
“I told you before,” LaRoque shouted back. “That crazy place scared me! I spent half the time clutching the floor! Listen, you little ape, don’t cast your slurs on me. Save them for your tree-mates!”
The chip shrieked, and Culla and Kepler rushed forward to hold the two apart. Jacob walked over to Fagin, uncertain what to say.
Over the tumult the Kanten said to him, gently, “It appears that your patrons, whoever they might have been, Friend-Jacob, must have been unique, indeed.”
Jacob nodded numbly.
9. REMEMBERING THE GREAT AUK