Read Online Before They Were Giants by James L. Sutter - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: James L. Sutter
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.”
“Wait,” Tom interrupted. “It’s finished but it’s useless.”
“What?”
Tom twisted around to look at the completed satellite, its oddly-angled framework and bulbous machinery glinting fiercely in the newly-risen sun. “After I finished it I looked through the sighting mechanism to make certain the satellite’s transmitters were correctly aimed at the settlement. Nobody told me to, but nobody said not to, either, so I looked. It’s a simple mechanism... The transmitters are pointed smack in the middle of Hudson’s Bay.”
“You’re sure?”
“Certainly.”
“You can rotate the antennas ...”
“I know. I tried it. I can turn them as far south as the Great Lakes.”
A long pause.
“I was afraid of this,” Jason’s voice said evenly.
I’ll bet you were, Tom answered to himself.
“You must have moved the satellite out of position while assembling its components.”
“So my work here comes to nothing because the satellite’s power beam can’t reach the settlement’s receivers.”
“Not... not unless you use the ship... to tow the satellite into the proper orbital position.” Jason stammered.
You actually went through with it, Tom thought. Aloud, he said, “But if I use the ship’s engine to tow the satellite, I won’t have enough fuel left to get back to Earth, will I?” Not to mention oxygen.
A longer pause. “No.”
“I have two questions, Jason. I think I know the answers to them both but I’ll ask you anyway. One. You knew this would happen, didn’t you?”
“What do you mean?”
“You’ve calculated this insane business down to the last drop of sweat,” Tom growled. “You knew that I’d knock the satellite out of position while I was working on it, and the only way to get it back in the right orbit would be for me to tow it back and strand myself up here. This is a suicide mission, isn’t it, Jason?”
“That’s not true...”
“Don’t bother defending yourself. I don’t hate you anymore, Jason, I understand you, dammit. You made our deal as much to get rid of me as to get our precious satellite put together.”
“No one can force you to tow the satellite ...”
“Sure, I can leave it where it is and come back home. If I can fly this ship, which I doubt. And what would I come back to? I left a world without power. I’d return to a world without hope. And some dark night one of your disappointed young goons would catch up with me... and no one would blame him, would they?”
Jason’s voice was brittle. “You’ll tow it into position?”
“After you answer my second question,” Tom countered. “Why are you afraid of the cities?”
“Afraid? I’m not afraid.”
“Yes, you are. Oh, you could use the hope of exploring the cities to lure me up here on this suicide-job, but you knew I’d never be back to claim my half of the bargain. You’re afraid of the cities, and I think I know why. You’re afraid of the unknown quantity they represent, distrustful of your own leadership when new problems arise...”
“We’ve worked for more than ten years to make this settlement what it is,” Jason fumed. “We fought and died to keep those marauding lunatics from wrecking us. We are mankind’s last hope! We can’t afford to let others in . . . they’re not scientists, they wouldn’t understand, they’d ruin everything.”
“Mankind’s last hope, terrified of men.” Tom was suddenly tired, weary of the whole struggle. But there was something he had to tell them.
“Listen, Jason,” he said. “The walls you’ve built around the settlement weren’t meant to keep you from going outside. You’re not a self-sufficient little community. . . you’re cut off from mankind’s memory, from his dreams, from his ambitions. You can’t even start to rebuild a civilization—and if you do try, don’t you think the people outside
“Wait,” Tom interrupted. “It’s finished but it’s useless.”
“What?”
Tom twisted around to look at the completed satellite, its oddly-angled framework and bulbous machinery glinting fiercely in the newly-risen sun. “After I finished it I looked through the sighting mechanism to make certain the satellite’s transmitters were correctly aimed at the settlement. Nobody told me to, but nobody said not to, either, so I looked. It’s a simple mechanism... The transmitters are pointed smack in the middle of Hudson’s Bay.”
“You’re sure?”
“Certainly.”
“You can rotate the antennas ...”
“I know. I tried it. I can turn them as far south as the Great Lakes.”
A long pause.
“I was afraid of this,” Jason’s voice said evenly.
I’ll bet you were, Tom answered to himself.
“You must have moved the satellite out of position while assembling its components.”
“So my work here comes to nothing because the satellite’s power beam can’t reach the settlement’s receivers.”
“Not... not unless you use the ship... to tow the satellite into the proper orbital position.” Jason stammered.
You actually went through with it, Tom thought. Aloud, he said, “But if I use the ship’s engine to tow the satellite, I won’t have enough fuel left to get back to Earth, will I?” Not to mention oxygen.
A longer pause. “No.”
“I have two questions, Jason. I think I know the answers to them both but I’ll ask you anyway. One. You knew this would happen, didn’t you?”
“What do you mean?”
“You’ve calculated this insane business down to the last drop of sweat,” Tom growled. “You knew that I’d knock the satellite out of position while I was working on it, and the only way to get it back in the right orbit would be for me to tow it back and strand myself up here. This is a suicide mission, isn’t it, Jason?”
“That’s not true...”
“Don’t bother defending yourself. I don’t hate you anymore, Jason, I understand you, dammit. You made our deal as much to get rid of me as to get our precious satellite put together.”
“No one can force you to tow the satellite ...”
“Sure, I can leave it where it is and come back home. If I can fly this ship, which I doubt. And what would I come back to? I left a world without power. I’d return to a world without hope. And some dark night one of your disappointed young goons would catch up with me... and no one would blame him, would they?”
Jason’s voice was brittle. “You’ll tow it into position?”
“After you answer my second question,” Tom countered. “Why are you afraid of the cities?”
“Afraid? I’m not afraid.”
“Yes, you are. Oh, you could use the hope of exploring the cities to lure me up here on this suicide-job, but you knew I’d never be back to claim my half of the bargain. You’re afraid of the cities, and I think I know why. You’re afraid of the unknown quantity they represent, distrustful of your own leadership when new problems arise...”
“We’ve worked for more than ten years to make this settlement what it is,” Jason fumed. “We fought and died to keep those marauding lunatics from wrecking us. We are mankind’s last hope! We can’t afford to let others in . . . they’re not scientists, they wouldn’t understand, they’d ruin everything.”
“Mankind’s last hope, terrified of men.” Tom was suddenly tired, weary of the whole struggle. But there was something he had to tell them.
“Listen, Jason,” he said. “The walls you’ve built around the settlement weren’t meant to keep you from going outside. You’re not a self-sufficient little community. . . you’re cut off from mankind’s memory, from his dreams, from his ambitions. You can’t even start to rebuild a civilization—and if you do try, don’t you think the people outside
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