WOULD YOU?
by Pat Greiner
(Part 3 of 4)
The next morning, Mokkan arrived to take Jean-Luc to the Mistral just a few moments before Beverly and Follim set off to gather bioreadings from another cross-section of the populace � this time, concentrating on getting a variety of people who were originally from each of the four continents that made up Eebron�s land mass.
They arrived at the spaceport and saw the sun glinting off the Mistral�s silver surface. The ship attracted onlookers, but the Eebronians were a polite culture. They looked from a distance, but didn�t approach too closely. If anyone did, Mokkan had assured Jean-Luc, the spaceport security team would soon shoo them away. Mokkan had gotten his first look at the interior of the ship when he brought Jean-Luc out to set up the sensor study the previous day. He was quite willing to take another look around. The Mistral, with its compact yet powerful computer, propulsion, and navigation systems, represented engineering that was still several generations ahead for his people. He had been fascinated by the holosuite. But this trip, with the data to look at, it was the astrogation computer that held his attention.
�I wondered if there might be something like this at work,� Jean-Luc nodded to himself.
�What did you find?� Mokkan asked, looking over his shoulder.
�Here,� Jean-Luc pointed to a map of the galaxy. �There is our home. Here is yours. The base level of tachyon radiation in our part of the galaxy is 0.4503. Here it is 2.335. My question is, where does that level change?�
�And here, it seems, is the answer. The gradient rises steeply right along this line. And the line, it seems, extends along a plane that cuts right across the galaxy.�
�But what causes that gradient?�
�That is a very interesting question, and I suspect that if and when human beings � or Eebronians � can answer it, we will understand much more about the fundamental nature of our universe.�
�And if it starts there at that gradient, where does it end?�
�For that, we need to look at the other end of the sensor sweep.� The computer changed the display at his command, and they saw that the band was a wide one indeed, stretching far past Eebron in the direction of the galactic barrier. �Quite a band � more like an entire section of space.�
�How long has our planet been passing through this band?� asked Mokkan.
Picard looked approvingly at the young man. He had a good mind and homed in quickly on key points. �Computer, calculate length of time for Eebron to pass through the band of elevated tachyon levels. Use the Eebronian year as your time basis.�
�The planet Eebron would have entered that area of space approximately 350 Eebronian years ago. It will emerge from tachyon-rich space in another 15 years, 5 months, and 6 days.�
Mokkan looked stunned. He stared at the computer display, and hardly seemed able to believe his eyes. �But that means that tachyons are responsible for oonsar � and that � that ��
�Don�t leap to too many conclusions, � Jean-Luc cautioned. �We know that the time during which your planet began to be exposed to high tachyon levels coincides with the time your people began to develop oonsar. It appears as though you will leave the tachyon belt at a time that coincides with some significant event in your future. But that tachyons actually cause oonsar � that�s too far a leap. And it doesn�t explain why every other society in this part of the galaxy doesn�t have the oonsar sense.�
�Well, if passing out of the tachyon belt is what happens to us in 15 years, it doesn�t make sense that we�ll all die from that. Clearly, we lived for thousands of generations before we entered that belt.�
�Quite correct. So it seems as though we may be looking at some sort of significant change, but probably not a planetary extinction.�
�Where do we go from here?� Mokkan asked.
�I want to confer with Doctor Crusher about that,� answered Picard. �I think she may want to gather some specific types of data that have more to do with tachyons.� He tapped his comm badge. �Beverly?�
�Here, Jean-Luc. Any news?� He outlined the findings for her, and Beverly suggested doing a detailed tachyon scan of Eebron itself. �Let me know if you find any particular hot spots on the planet itself. Oh, and of course we�ll need the general tachyon level of the upper atmosphere.�
�2 point something, wasn�t it?� Mokkan chimed in.
�That�s the level in this region of space. Dr. Crusher seems to think that it may be even higher within the atmosphere. Beverly, does this coincide with anything you�ve been finding?�
�There do seem to be some regional variations in the strength of the oonsar sense. I have no idea where this may be going, but it�s the closest thing to a lead we�ve got. Let�s see how closely tachyon levels coordinate with oonsar abilities.�
Jean-Luc reset the sensors to focus on the planet itself. �This will take some time. I would like to go back to the university. I believe Professor Jalewf mentioned last night that he had a comprehensive time line drawn up concerning the limit which he thought might be useful.�
***********************
Later that afternoon Beverly and Follim were aboard the Mistral. A large map of Eebron was spread out on one end of the conference table. Beverly was completing the download from her tricorder into the ship�s computer while Follim reviewed the same screens of data that Picard had shown Mokkan earlier that day.
�Now,� said Beverly, �Let�s see what Jean-Luc�s scan of Eebron may have turned up. Computer, what it the background level of tachyon radiation in the upper atmosphere of Eebron?�
�3.659,� answered the neutral female voice.
�Is the tachyon level evenly dispersed around the planet?�
�No. Levels peak sharply over the continent known as Ibewka.�
Beverly looked at Follim. �Does that suggest anything to you?�
Follim nodded. �Ibewka has long had a reputation for producing many of the most sensitive oonsar visionaries. They either come from there, or go there to study. There is an institute of oonsar there ��
�An institute? Have we met anyone from there? Are they studying the limit problem?�
�Perhaps institute is the wrong word, although that it what they call themselves. It is not a place of scientific study. More like an artists� colony. Many very gifted oonsar readers spend time there, and they do hold classes of some sort. But they feel very strongly that oonsar is a gift � to be cultivated and sharpened, perhaps, but not dissected and understood. Still, it does make sense that the Ibewkan Institute is such a center for oonsar � if there is some connection between these tachyon particles and oonsar, it does not surprise me to find that both are concentrated in the same area.�
�Nor me. But it is an intriguing development. And it�s the best lead we�ve come up with yet. I wonder �� Beverly trailed off as she turned over various possibilities in her mind. �Follim, can you put me in touch with Flotral�s sister, Mhabi? I want to talk with her some more about the actual experience of oonsar.�
Follim was on her roving caller in an instant, making the arrangements. �She�ll expect us at her offices in an hour.� Beverly spent the time until they had to leave correlating more of the data she had recorded over the past few days.
�There�s a very clear pattern. Most of those who have the strongest sense of oonsar also seem to have some sort of ties to Ibewka. There are exceptions, certainly � but the great majority of scans all fit the notion that something in that area enhances oonsar ability.�
�Well, Flotral and Mhabi both have very stong oonsar.�
�Do they have a connection to Ibewka?� Beverly asked. That question was one she was looking forward to asking Mhabi.
�They grew up there. I don�t believe they came to Macel until they were 9 or 10 years old.�
�There�s just one more thing I need to do before we go,� Beverly said, as she established a link between the ship�s computer and her tricorder once again and initiated a series of commands. �I�m reprogramming the tricorder to scan specifically for tachyons in a very narrow beam. I hope that Mhabi might permit me to conduct a scan of her while she is working, to see if there�s unusual tachyon activity.� When she finished, Beverly took test readings of both herself and Follim. �Mine is bit higher than normal � at least, for normal as we define it in our end of the galaxy. Yours is higher than mine, again to be expected. You�ve lived your whole life in a tachyon-enriched environment. What about your sense of oonsar, Follim? Are you particularly sensitive?�
�Not really. I�d say I�m probably on the low side of average. And I don�t practice it very often, so my sense isn�t very sharp.� Beverly recorded her findings and Follim�s estimate of her own sense. At this point, any data she could stuff into the computer was equally valuable or useless. Although the haystack was considerably smaller, there were still a lot of places where a needle could hide.
Minutes later, the two women were once again crossing Macel in Follim�s hovercar, and Beverly was anticipating the meeting with Mhabi for two reasons. She had a strong feeling that she was nearing the answers they sought � and she was hoping to have a chance to ask Mhabi privately about her experience last night.
Mhabi�s office was a suite in a very new-looking professional building � but the furnishings gave it the lush, sensuous feel of a desert sheik�s tent. Her assistant greeted them and conducted them into the secluded room where Mhabi met with her subjects. Beverly explained the theories they were working on, and asked Mhabi about her time in Ibewka.
�Well, as Follim has told you, Flotral and I grew up there. Our whole family was fairly adept at oonsar. In fact, my father was one of the directors at the Institute. We all practiced often, from the time we were just old enough to understand the concept. There was always a conceit around that Ibewkans were the best in the world at oonsar, but to be honest, I just put that down to regional pride. I think that�s what everyone thought it was. Or at the most, that if we were better at it, it was because we practiced it more and truly appreciated the art of oonsar more than other regions. And the Institute was a wonderful place with a very special feel all its own �a bit free-wheeling, socially very open and curious, and yet totally dedicated to deepening and strengthening the practice of oonsar.�
�And understanding it as well?� interrupted Beverly.
�No, strangely enough, I suppose, we were not so concerned with understanding it in a scientific sense. Many of us seemed to assume that it could not be understood in those terms, or that to do so would somehow damage or weaken it.� She smiled sadly. �We were young, most of us, and we tried so hard to hang on to the magic of things. And there were many who believed very strongly that it was a divine gift given to our people and to study and dissect it would be both ungrateful and dishonorable. At any rate, we had our conceits as well. So many young people all immersed in an experience that has great emotional power � we felt as though no one else in the world was experiencing what we were. And we used to joke that perhaps there was something in the water at Ibewka that made our oonsar so strong. Well, perhaps it wasn�t such a joke after all. But we had it wrong � it was in the air.�
�Everywhere, actually,� said Beverly. �If tachyons are related to oonsar as we think, then the influence is in the air, the water, the buildings, the soil � tachyons have the ability to permeate almost any substance. But why would they cluster around one particular area like that?�
�Unless they come up out of the volcano,� laughed Mhabi.
�Volcano?� Beverly echoed. �There�s a volcano close by?�
�Mount Ibewka,� said Follim. �One of the chief tourist attractions in the area. Active enough to put on a good show of sparks and steam most days, but it hasn�t had a true eruption in hundreds of generations. Could it be a tachyon source as well?�
�You read my mind, Follim.� She tapped her comm badge. �Jean-Luc?�
�Yes, Doctor?�
They arranged for him to return to the Mistral and conduct a detailed fly-over scan of the Ibewkan continent, paying particular attention to the region where the Institute was located, and the nearby volcano. �Let me know when you�ve returned. I hope that with Mhabi�s help I�ll have the rest of the data I need, and we can start to find some answers.�
�This sounds most promising, doctor. Mokkan and I will be on our way shortly.�
Beverly turned to the task she hoped to complete next. She wasn�t at all certain how her request would be received. �I�d like to conduct tachyon scans of you while you�re actually doing a reading. But I realize they are very private sessions.�
�Yes, that will be difficult. Unless,� Mhabi paused and looked at Follim, �your assistant might be willing to volunteer to serve as the subject for the reading?�
�Of course,� Follim agreed quickly. �I don�t mind. I had my lifespan read years ago � but one never knows. Perhaps for the first time in history, two readings will come up with different answers.�
Beverly began by taking base readings of tachyon levels. Mhabi�s was several tenths of a point higher than Follim�s. Then Mhabi began the same process with Follim that she had done with Beverly on the previous evening. As Follim relaxed, Beverly scanned for tachyon activity. At first there seemed to be no fluctuations. Then the readings began to shift, indicating that while the levels were not increasing, the tachyons present in both women�s systems were contracting into two focal points, one within each body. As Mhabi began to sway, a beam of particles began to flow back and forth between the points, tentative at first, then stronger and quicker. Beverly was amazed � her tricorder was forming a visual image of the oonsar connection between the reader and her subject. It was remarkable. Clearly tachyons did play an essential role in the sensing of oonsar. Carefully she saved the scan, cleared the fields, and initiated a second scan to confirm her findings. The results were identical.
After about 4 minutes had passed, Mhabi and Follim emerged from the trancelike state. Mhabi kept a firm hold on Follim�s shoulders and turned her so that she stared straight into her subject�s eyes. For a moment she held the gaze in silence.
�I gather the results weren�t any different?� Follim half-laughed. �It�s all right. I�ve known for years. I had a very detailed reading done when I was 6.�
�And you are prepared?� Mhabi asked kindly.
�As far as business arrangements, entirely. As far as personal arrangements, to be involved in this endeavor, to meet and work with these people from the other side of the galaxy, to play a part in perhaps solving the puzzle of the limit � I could not ask for a better way to spend my final days.�
�Final days?� Beverly had been trying intentionally not to hear the conversation, but that phrase cut through her resolve. �Follim, are you � is your lifespan �� Humans simply were not equipped to ask �Are you dying soon?� as an offhand question. It stuck in her throat, but Follim understood at once.
�Do not be concerned for me, Beverly. You have added more purpose and excitement to these days than I could have wished for. And for a person like me, whose great love is my work, that is a wonderful gift. After you leave, I will go to my brother�s house. He and his family are the only close relatives I have, and I want to spend my last days with them. Oh, Beverly, you should see your face. I would never have thought you could be so flustered.�
�It�s only that your � well, your entirely calm acceptance of death is so foreign to our experience. As a doctor, everything in me tries to hold death at bay. Follim, may I give you a thorough physical, back at the Mistral? There may be a medical problem that I can find and repair, something your doctors may have missed.�
�My health is fine, Beverly. I know that I have six days left to me, and I know that my end will be quite sudden. I suspect it will be some sort of accident.�
�But if you don�t do anything that day. You don�t leave the house, you don�t leave your bed, you just ��
�Then something would come to me, Beverly. A hovercar would stall and crash through the ceiling of the bedroom. A freak storm would send a bolt of lightning. There is no cheating, Beverly. What is, simply is. I will not tarnish my last days with fear or protest. I will live them with as much joy as I can. And there is more of that, thanks to you.�
�But Follim, I � I don�t know what to say. I had imagined that when we had an answer, I would share it with you, that you would be here as my link to Eebron. I�ve gotten to like you very much in the last few days.�
�I�m sorry that you had to learn of my end. I really should have told Fornees when he asked me to be your assistant � but I thought that there would be no need for you ever to know the information. Although I did worry that you would want to conduct one of your bioscans and histories on me, and then the secret would have been out.�
�Isn�t that funny? I was so busy with so many other subjects, it never occurred to me to run one on you.�
�Well, since that is what we came here for � did your scans of Mhabi show anything conclusive?�
�It was quite incredible,� Beverly began, and she replayed the scans for them, stopping here and there to point out some of the readings. �This is even more dramatic evidence than anything I�d hoped for. It quite clearly confirms that tachyon particles play an integral role in the function of oonsar. I can hardly wait to show this to Jean-Luc and see how it correlates with the research he�s been doing.�
�I�m so glad I�ve been able to be helpful with your research, Beverly,� said Mhabi. �Words can�t express how grateful I am that you two have done so much to try and help us.�
�This is why we�re here, Mhabi. We believe that part of our reason for being is to explore, to learn, to grow. To meet other civilizations and find ways to work together and to help each other � if we can�t do that, then we�re just passing through, without leaving any mark at all.� Beverly smiled. �Besides, I have another favor to ask of you.�
�What can I do?�
Beverly described her experience the previous evening. �Was it just a dream, do you think? Or is it possible that I had an inkling of experiencing oonsar?�
�I have never heard of off-worlders having any oonsar visions of their own. But there is a first time for everything. One of the mysteries about oonsar is where it resides. Unlike other senses and faculties, we have never been able to pinpoint a physical location for it. So I cannot say for sure that a non-Ebronian can or cannot sense oonsar. But it does seem unlikely. And there�s also the fact that you sensed a lifespan extending out 60 years. That�s well past the limit � unless for some reason the limit doesn�t affect off-worlders. But that can�t be right, either. I think what you experienced was a dream, Beverly.�
�I thought that was probably the case,� she nodded, looking a little disappointed.
�You wished it had been real?� Mhabi asked.
�I liked the idea of knowing that Jean-Luc had so many years left to him.�
�Tell me something, Beverly. Is Jean-Luc very important to your happiness?�
�Essential. We have a long and complicated history together. Even though we�ve been attracted to each other for many, many years, circumstances were such that we could never act on those feelings until recently. We have an old and deep friendship, and yet suddenly it has a new and passionate side to it. He means more than I can say.�
�And if you were to lose him �?�
�I�d be crushed. Life would go on, I suppose, but I would be desolate.�
�Then let me tell you this. But wait, I�m forgetting. This has to do with your reading, and you may wish to discuss it in private.�
�Of course,� Follim said quickly, realizing Mhabi was referring to her presence. She rose. �I�ll be in the outer office.�
�No, Follim, you don�t have to go,� Beverly said. �I don�t mind having you hear anything Mhabi has to say to me. If it�s going to be some intense emotional stuff, I�ll want a friend here.� She stretched a hand out toward Follim, who came back into the room. They clasped each other�s shoulders for a few seconds, then turned their attention back to Mhabi.
�I don�t mean to be suspenseful,� she began. �What I have to say is good news. What I heard in your song, Beverly, showed me that you�ve had your share of sadness and loss in the past. Your joys and sorrows were very much intermingled. But the portion of your song that stretches forward from here � there is much joy, and much variety. Remember, I can only sense your lifespan, not his. But if losing Jean-Luc would truly be tragic for you � well, I heard no sense of tragedy, all the way to the limit.� She paused, reached forward and touched Beverly�s shoulder. �Yes, I followed your song all the way to the limit. It ended there, at 15 years. But if I understand what you and Follim told me earlier, there�s a possibility that the limit is not the end of our lives, but perhaps the end of something less drastic.�
Beverly could restrain neither the smile that glowed on her face nor the tears that misted up in her eyes. Mhabi and Follim gathered close on either side of her and the three of them simply hugged in silence for a moment while Beverly regained her composure. �Thank you, Mhabi,� she said warmly.
Just then her comm badge chirped. �Picard to Doctor Crusher.�
�Are you back at the spaceport?�
�I am, and I think you�ll find the data quite interesting.�
�We�re on our way.�
Mhabi escorted her two guests through the office suite and bid them farewell. Follim took Beverly back to the Mistral, and offered to return later to pick them up and ferry them to their lodgings. Knowing now how much this project meant to the woman, Beverly wanted to include her in as much as she could. �If you don�t have other plans, would you like to sit in with us as we put out data together?�
�If I won�t be in the way, I would be honored.�
�Chances are we�ll have any number of questions about Eebron as we look at things. It would be so helpful to have someone we could ask immediately.�
�Then I�d love to stay,� Follim said as she guided the craft to a stop next to the Mistral. Her smile made Beverly sure she�d made the right choice.
(This story concludes in one more part.)