"Then they are dead," Miaree said.
"The last image," Mother Aglee said.
From the planet, a blunt arrow. Behind the arrow, a glare of light. A driver. Beside it more figures.
"As nearly as we can guess," Lady Jonea said, "this figure represents a multiple of God’s Constant."
"Yes," Miaree said. "It would have to be. But—"
"Two years ago we started receiving these," Mother Aglee said, thrusting another packet onto Miaree. Miaree opened, looked.
"A course in language?" Miaree asked.
"For children," Lady Jonea said. "Basic numerology. The next one advances to the periodic table, a universal language."
"I don’t understand," Miaree said. "No one knew. I mean, there was no word."
"We thought it best," Mother Aglee said.
"But everyone could hear. These are strong."
"How often do you monitor the electromagnetic bands above thirty thousand megacycles?"
"Not since University," Miaree admitted. "Not since we studied the attempts at interstellar communications." She fidgeted. "But I still don’t understand. Why would you keep such a great event a secret?"
"Look at the first picture," Mother Aglee said. "The first one in the second packet."
It was past the language lessons. There was, once again, that obviously male figure, hand extended. On one side of the figure was the planet in Delan. On the other, an unmistakable representation of the Artonuee system. Miaree recognized the drawing of her system. It was a copy of the elementary messages sent during the abortive attempt at interstellar communications.
"It is a friendly gesture," she said, indicating the man’s outstretched hand.
"Perhaps." Mother Aglee admitted. "Other observations?"
"An opporunity to learn their secrets. The power of the sun in some sort of driver engine. Speeds which would free us—"
"More basic observations, please," Mother Aglee said.
"I don’t understand."
"He is quite obviously male," Lady Jonea said.
"I see," Miaree said, nodding. "And in the group picture, he is represented first. A male-dominated society?"
"With the scientific knowledge to negate God’s Constant," Mother Aglee said. "And you yourself made an astute observation when you first looked at the selection of messages which were obviously sent from a driver in flight between stars. You said, as I recall, that it was a language for children."
"No," Miaree said. "It was Lady Jonea who said it was a lesson for children. I merely looked on it as being basic."
"Nevertheless," said Mother Aglee, "we must, in contacting such a race, behave with extreme caution. Observe the configuration of the alien male. Long, powerful arms, rounded. Like our males and yet unlike them, more powerful by far, it would seem. We must consider this apparent advantage. As we must consider others. Obviously, their technology is advanced. If they can best God’s Constant, what else can they do?"
"Perhaps." Miaree said, "they have not been shackled in their research by hysterical males who scream sacrilege each time someone suggests that a new idea is not a repetition of the cardinal sin."
"Be that as it may," Mother Aglee said, "we are faced with a problem."
"It would seem to me, Mother, that our problem now is reduced to floating atomic particles on the surface of the sun," Miaree said.
"It is?" The older female sighed. "The planet of the aliens, in Delan, is very near the impact point of the stars. I feel that an advanced society, capable of star flight, will not be content with sending one driver to dive into the sun. That we must accept as very possible fact. I feel, daughters, that we will yet have our opportunity to meet these males from Delan face to face. We must be prepared. It is fortunate that it was you, Miaree, who saw the alien driver, for I have been considering, with much mental anguish, the necessity of sharing our secret with someone, someone capable of taking the alien messages and absorbing this language lesson for children. It was to be someone in the Research Quad, of course, but until today, I must confess that you had not occurred to me. Since you know, and are qualified, the choice is now made."
"There is one possible complication, Mother," Miaree said.
"Yes," Mother Aglee said, "under the aroma of charge I did detect it. Congratulations, daughter. Your ifflings will be a welcome addition to the stores of Artonuee life. I think, however, that you will find time for both."
"I will try," Miaree said, bowing her head.
Chapter Six
Thank you, LaConius, you read well, even if your Tigian accent is a bit much at times. You must work on that, you know. Provincialism is the bane of our growing family of worlds. Unarrested, it could lead to dire results. Examples of provincialism, Alaxender?
Sir, the War of Zede II would be an example.
A good one. Thank you, Alaxender. Provincialism leads to nationalism. On the isolated planet of Zede II it was allowed to grow. Until, as one would cut out a cancerous growth, we eliminated it. But we are diverted. Impressions and summation, if you please, in the time remaining to us today. Cecile?
I like her. I like her very much.
Not the most astute of comments, Cecile. Why do you like her?
I don't know, really. She's young and beautiful and intelligent. Everything a woman should be.
But is she a woman?
Obviously. Different, but still beautiful.
Describe Miaree. Julius?
Idonno—
Don't know.
I don't know, sir. I see sort of a—well, she's sorta weird.
Sort of. Yes, Stella.
Not weird at all. Not like us, naturally, having evolved on a totally different planet, under totally different evolutionary conditions. I see her as being light and almost elfin.
The term elfin is not definite, but is merely a word out of mythology. Continue, Stella.
Well, sir, she's almost birdlike.
No.
Yes, LaConius?
Sir, like a Tigian butterfly.
Ah!
Even to the life cycle. She has wings. And the— what are they? The winglings. They fly. And I see the i&ings as caterpillars, crawling around the woods eating leaves.
Yes, but if you had finished your assignment, LaConius, you would have seen, although there is a certain correlativity, that ifflings are not caterpillars.
Well, sir, maybe not in the same shape. But the cycle is the same. Butterflies begin as eggs and then go through the larval stage, then into chrysalis, and finally emerge as winged creatures, fully adult.
But the writer speaks of a third change in the Artonuee.
Sir.
Elizabeth.
Since the Artonuee are much more complicated beings, perhaps the third change is necessary. In fact, in chapter—
Good, Elizabeth. Since you have obviously read ahead, describe Miaree.
I agree with LaConius, that she is like a butterfly. She has a sort of light fur. It could be like the minute scales on a butterfly. It's soft and not at all unbeautiful. And she has those long lips. She drank from a flower. Yet it was a thing she did only under cover of darkness and in privacy, indicating to me that it is only the young of the species, the winglings, who live on flower nectar. I think Miaree must be biped, for she is so described. And she apparently has only two arms. There is a hint toward her general shape in the mention of her—ah—rear. Apparently, the rear is, perhaps, more developed than in our races. And apparently, sexual connotations were present, since Miaree is aware of something, the eggs
in her.
Very good. Any additions?
She has beautiful eyes, quite like the eyes of an insect, I think, large and blue and pretty.
Yes, Leslie. John?
We have butterflies on Selbelle III. I think they were imported from LaConius' home world, because our native life forms are rather like lizards. I thought of them when I drew Miaiee. Would you like to see?