“It seemed most promising,” said the ship. “Ram Odin himself seemed to have such ability in a latent, uncontrollable form. That is why, instead of the ship being obliterated by the fractional time differences between the nineteen computers calculating the jump, the contradictions were resolved by thrusting the ship backward in time by eleven thousand, one hundred ninety-one years. Ram Odin mated and reproduced, and those who carried the time-shift genes have been carefully crossbred to result in a combination of high intelligence, strong commitment to civilization, and the ability to control time-shifting.”
“Commitment to civilization?”
“You get along well with others.”
Rigg thought back over the past year. He and Umbo could have been rivals. So could he and Param. Instead, they had cooperated—and earned the trust and help of Loaf and Olivenko, too. Father had taught him that civilization only worked when people were willing to sacrifice some of their immediate self-interest for the good of the whole, and only those willing to sacrifice the most were fit to lead, because only they could earn and keep the trust of others.
“I’m not the one who should be doing this,” said Rigg.
“Expendable Ram believes you are.”
“In ten thousand years, I’m the best he could get?”
“In the collective opinion of the ships’ computers and the expendables, you are the first-choice option. We do not have control over the timing of the arrival of the first ship from Earth. It is possible, though unlikely, that no ship will come here for generations. You are now in place, in case they come soon.”
“What will I do if they come?”
“That is for you to decide.”
“But you computers and expendables know far more than I do.”
“Our knowledge is at your disposal.”
“Vadesh’s wasn’t,” said Rigg.
“Vadesh offered you the best of his wallfold.”
“A facemask on my friend?”
“It is the result of ten thousand years of careful breeding on his part. All the expendables are meticulous workers.”
“But he lied to me again and again!”
“He created circumstances in which you could be taught what you needed to learn.”
“I learned that expendables lie.”
“You already knew that,” said the ship’s voice. “What you did not know was how Vadesh’s improvements to the facemask would enhance the symbiosis between native and human life.”
“So you approve of what Vadesh did?”
“Vadesh fulfilled his assignment from Ram Odin. Now he is fully subject to your commands.”
“I can’t trust him! I don’t even know if I can trust you.”
“And yet you are trusting me, and Vadesh will obey you.”
“I’m not going to let this stand,” said Rigg. “You know that I’m going to go back in time and warn myself not to come in here.”
“Then you will not get control of this ship,” said the ship.
“I don’t want control! I just want to get out of Vadeshfold without a facemask on anybody.”
“That is possible,” said the voice.
“Then that’s what will happen.”
“And yet you have not done it,” said the ship.