that dominated the Tomariian day faded even more and the planet became unbearably cold. It was time for the war campaigns to begin.
The prisoners had been trained and now preparations were being made for battle. The rockets were ready for firing; their on-ground support crews were ready to retreat to warmer, underground chambers throughout the long cycle of Tomariian cold. The purpose of the warfare and where it would occur were still mysteries to the prisoners, who, with their Tomariian captors, boarded the ships to leave the planet. Spock and Julina were placed in the lead ship with IIsa. The others went with their Tomariian custodians into the other ships, ready for takeoff.
Spock's curiosity could not be suppressed; he was too reliant on information to formulate some strategy to deal with the situation, to be kept completely uninformed for much longer. He chafed to be on the bridge where the Begum was directing her forces. Forced to sit in the confines of a small compartment in the bowels of the ship, the Vulcan reflected on the fats he did possess, sharing his observations with Julina.
"These Tomariians remain an enigma. Their architecture and other material culture is as bleak as any I have ever encountered. IIsa's household, however, contains some objects of astonishing beauty. That gold cup she is so proud of is so finely wrought that it has the intricacy of a spider's web, and the plate on the wall is cast with a delicacy of workmanship beyond anything I have ever seen in the craft. A sculpture which she has half-obscured in a corner has lines so carefully balanced they would overwhelm even a Vulcan's sense of aesthetics.
"There are other things which do not fit in with the Tomariian utilitarian existence. These artifacts seem to be from different planets, with different concepts of design and material, collected in what seems to be a random sampling. And not all of what has been accumulated is of value. Some is absolutely worthless. The Tomariians seem to make no distinction between the truly artistic masterpiece and the tourist items sold on pleasure planets."
"It makes no sense to me at all, Spock. I have never confronted any race or culture like this in all of my space experience."
"Neither have I," Spock said, continuing his analysis. "The animal skins Tomariians choose to wear are primitiveâI can think of no better word to describe them. Their jewelry, except for that which is obviously a device, such as IIsa's ring, varies in quality as much as the other artifacts I have examined. I am convinced they are the spoils of war, a collection of samples taken from many different worlds by the Tomariians."
"I tend to agree with you. But if what you say is true, they have a much greater sphere of influence than I would have imagined."
"Yes, and in this context, the inconsistencies in technology are explained," he commented. "The Tomariians use the technology they acquire from their conquered enemies, taking what they find useful. They discard things they regard as superfluous, so their technology, like their collection of artifacts, is piecemeal. They are not innovators, simply Scavengers, developing only enough of their own technology to have started them in their ventures of conquest. How broad their influence is remains to be determined. But from what I can deduce, it is impressively extensive."
The Tomariians were on a new mission now, though whether one of conquest or otherwise, the Vulcan did not know. He thought back to their preparations: They had taken a sportsman's pleasure in the prospective war, wagering on the results. Spock was sure they had wagered on their prisoners' performances as well. As he thought the entire Tomariian rationale became clear.
"I now understand what our role must be. We are a test sample. Our performance in battle will be an indication of our respective forces' potential strength."
"So that is why we were attacked," Julina said. "It was not an overt act designed to
The prisoners had been trained and now preparations were being made for battle. The rockets were ready for firing; their on-ground support crews were ready to retreat to warmer, underground chambers throughout the long cycle of Tomariian cold. The purpose of the warfare and where it would occur were still mysteries to the prisoners, who, with their Tomariian captors, boarded the ships to leave the planet. Spock and Julina were placed in the lead ship with IIsa. The others went with their Tomariian custodians into the other ships, ready for takeoff.
Spock's curiosity could not be suppressed; he was too reliant on information to formulate some strategy to deal with the situation, to be kept completely uninformed for much longer. He chafed to be on the bridge where the Begum was directing her forces. Forced to sit in the confines of a small compartment in the bowels of the ship, the Vulcan reflected on the fats he did possess, sharing his observations with Julina.
"These Tomariians remain an enigma. Their architecture and other material culture is as bleak as any I have ever encountered. IIsa's household, however, contains some objects of astonishing beauty. That gold cup she is so proud of is so finely wrought that it has the intricacy of a spider's web, and the plate on the wall is cast with a delicacy of workmanship beyond anything I have ever seen in the craft. A sculpture which she has half-obscured in a corner has lines so carefully balanced they would overwhelm even a Vulcan's sense of aesthetics.
"There are other things which do not fit in with the Tomariian utilitarian existence. These artifacts seem to be from different planets, with different concepts of design and material, collected in what seems to be a random sampling. And not all of what has been accumulated is of value. Some is absolutely worthless. The Tomariians seem to make no distinction between the truly artistic masterpiece and the tourist items sold on pleasure planets."
"It makes no sense to me at all, Spock. I have never confronted any race or culture like this in all of my space experience."
"Neither have I," Spock said, continuing his analysis. "The animal skins Tomariians choose to wear are primitiveâI can think of no better word to describe them. Their jewelry, except for that which is obviously a device, such as IIsa's ring, varies in quality as much as the other artifacts I have examined. I am convinced they are the spoils of war, a collection of samples taken from many different worlds by the Tomariians."
"I tend to agree with you. But if what you say is true, they have a much greater sphere of influence than I would have imagined."
"Yes, and in this context, the inconsistencies in technology are explained," he commented. "The Tomariians use the technology they acquire from their conquered enemies, taking what they find useful. They discard things they regard as superfluous, so their technology, like their collection of artifacts, is piecemeal. They are not innovators, simply Scavengers, developing only enough of their own technology to have started them in their ventures of conquest. How broad their influence is remains to be determined. But from what I can deduce, it is impressively extensive."
The Tomariians were on a new mission now, though whether one of conquest or otherwise, the Vulcan did not know. He thought back to their preparations: They had taken a sportsman's pleasure in the prospective war, wagering on the results. Spock was sure they had wagered on their prisoners' performances as well. As he thought the entire Tomariian rationale became clear.
"I now understand what our role must be. We are a test sample. Our performance in battle will be an indication of our respective forces' potential strength."
"So that is why we were attacked," Julina said. "It was not an overt act designed to
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