The Ship Finder Page 4

"Here are some more questions that I'm supposed to ask you," she said. "In the last few years, has your metabolism changed? Have you gained weight?"

  "Yes. I decided to jog every day or so because I had started to put on a few pounds."

  "My superiors also asked me to remind you that after you took nano meds you lost weight and didn't have to exercise. Your body is now more youthful." She crossed her legs, and her nylons made a rubbing sound.

  "I guess that's why I'm allowed to drink beer," he said. What's the reason for this line of talk? He poured more beer into his frosty glass and took a sip. It was first-rate.

  "Can I turn on a small recorder so I don't have to take notes?" she asked.

  "Why not?"

  Lena took a mini audio recorder from her purse, pushed its record button, and set the machine on the end table near Bill's glass of beer.

  "So, because of these great health benefits that we have given you, do you feel that in exchange you could align yourself with our Sunevian government?" she asked, reading the question from her notebook.

  Wilson paused. I should answer "yes" no matter what, he thought. I want to be able to go home. "Sure, I'll align myself with the Sunevian government."

  "My chiefs will be glad to hear that," she said. "Now, let's turn to your background. According to information about you on the Internet, you're a young world-famous human genome scientist. I wonder how you were able to achieve that level of success in a short time."

  She sipped more beer from her long-stemmed glass and then unfastened the top button of her blouse.

  "Hard work got me where I'm at," he said. "I went to Stanford University in California where I majored in physical education with a minor in biology. Though I loved biology, my goal at that time was to be a pro baseball player. I was on the Stanford baseball team, and major league scouts offered me lots of money to quit school and play pro ball. I struggled with a decision, but I decided to continue my studies."

  "Did you ever play professional baseball?" she asked.

  "No, I got hurt before I finished college. In my senior year, I pitched in a game against Arizona State. After I threw a fastball, I felt pain in my groin, and I had to leave the game."

  "Was it serious?" Lena asked, undoing the next button down on her blouse.

  "Doctors diagnosed a hernia. My personal physician, from Stanford Medical Center, Dr. Alex Rigor, operated on me, and I was impressed with the procedure. Though it was a success, I decided not to become a pro ballplayer because I was fascinated by medicine."

  Wilson drank the last of his alien beer. "After my hernia operation, I asked Rigor to help me decide if medicine would be a good career for me. We became close friends despite our age difference, and he convinced me to become a surgeon."

  "Why did you want to be a physician?" She unbuttoned the cuff of her right sleeve.

  "I wanted to help people who had sports injuries. But my side interest was bioengineering and gene therapy, and that's why I later became a part-time professor of genomics at the University of California, Berkeley. I'm now on a yearlong sabbatical leave from the university and the hospital. During the year I plan to learn what progress has been made in human genome research around the world."

  "Is this related to nano medicine?" Lena asked, and she unbuttoned her other sleeve.

  "Yes, I'm sure nano technology will have an impact on DNA research."

  "Perhaps Sunev can help you in this effort. We'll see," she said.

  Lena sat back in her chair. "One more thing," she said. She removed a comb from her hair and shook it loose. Then she unfastened another button on her blouse. "Did you have any other activities while you attended college?"

  He wondered, What's she doing? I know it's hot in here, but she's practically disrobing. "I won a few pistol and rifle marksmanship contests. My father had taught me to shoot when I was ten because Dad thought that I would be drafted into the army and would have to go into combat. He was an infantry veteran who had fought in the Columbian jungle against the drug lord troops in the Narcotics War."

  Lena leaned forward. "Do you have any girlfriends?"

  "Not at present. I'm in between relationships."

  "I have been assigned to be your companion. On Sunev if a woman is sexually attracted to a man, she doesn't have to stand on ceremony. I'll strip for you." She turned beet red, stood up, and pushed a button on her portable recorder. Raunchy music filled Wilson's cabin. "Sorry, I'm blushing. I do it even though I'm trained for this."

  "That's okay," he stammered and then began to sweat. Wow, he thought. She seemed so bashful at first.

  "You need a companion," she said with a throaty voice. "I like you. You need to relish your life to the fullest and listen to your Inner One. My blushing makes you feel better, huh?"

  "Yes," he said. This feels like a setup, but, what the hell; why not go with the program? Wilson felt uneasy.

  She took off her blouse, tossed it aside, revealing her black bra. Then she began to dance to the music, moving closer to him.

  "Unzip my skirt."

  He unzipped it, and her red skirt fell around her ankles. She stepped out of it and continued to dance, moving even closer to him until they touched.

  "Undo my bra."

  His hands shook as he undid its clasp. It's just like the bras worn by Earth women, he thought.

  She turned to him. "Kiss me," she said.

  He did. She helped him off with his clothes, and she hugged him with her arms and legs. Suddenly, they were making love, and he learned that her body was like that of an Earth woman and was perfect.

  She's the most beautiful woman I've ever had, and it was the best sex experience.

  "I want to stay close," she said. They lay on the couch, held each other, and dozed for twenty minutes.

  "You're wonderful," he said.

  Lena smiled. "I enjoyed it. You're not too shocked, are you? I hope you like our customs." She turned deep red.

  "I can learn to live with them," he said, and he kissed her gently but with steadily growing passion. She felt soft, warm, and her beauty seemed to radiate from her body into him. I'm shocked all right, he thought. Go with the flow.

  She stopped kissing, sat up, and smiled sweetly. "As for further enjoyment, I suggest we go to the cafeteria and have a nice lunch," she proposed.

  "Food tastes good, but your kisses are much better," he said. They again caressed, and he kissed her once more. Her tongue probed his mouth, and her lips were soft. She patted his back and smiled.

  "Please put your clothes on," she said. "I'm hungry."

  "Okay," he said reluctantly. He went to his armoire, got his street clothes, and began to dress. She buttoned his shirt, and slowly began to put her clothes on. After they had dressed she seemed bashful again, like she was another person.

  "We need to meet Raven for lunch," she said. "He wants to tell you something."

  "What?"

  "I don't know," she replied.

  They left for the ship's cafeteria.

  Chapter 5 – The Deal

  Wilson and Lena walked from his cabin to the ship's cafeteria holding hands.

  "I'm also curious about what Raven wants to tell you," Lena said.

  "I don't have the slightest clue as to what he's up to," Wilson said. After what just happened I'm ready for anything though, he said to himself.

  Raven waved them to his table in the cafeteria. Wilson asked for bacon and eggs, potatoes, and coffee. Lena ordered the same.

  "How did you come to have food from Earth in your galley?" asked Wilson, as he ate one of two over-easy eggs.

  "We buy food at supermarkets when we visit your planet," Raven said. "When we're on Sunev, we get products from local farmers. We've introduced many Earth foods to include much of what's on this table. Our farmers raise chickens and pigs and grow potatoes and other crops native to Earth." Raven bit into a pork sausage.

  Wilson inhaled the aromas of eggs and coffee. "You've grown to like a lot about Earth," he said.

&
nbsp; "Yes," Raven replied, and he sipped his black coffee. "Just as we've learned about Earth's food, our leaders would like us to learn more about earthlings. So, some of our renowned researchers and others would like to meet you."

  "That sounds great," he said.

  "After you heal a little more, in maybe a week," Raven said, "I'll introduce you to the board of directors of the National Dimensional Travel Agency. I work for NDTA. It's a branch of the government that directs travel to other dimensions. You are the first person from Earth to whom we have disclosed our technology."

  Lena looked up from her food and glanced at Wilson. "What a great experience you'll have when you meet the heads of the agency," she said.

  Wilson nodded.

  "I'm told they'll have a ceremony in which they'll honor your bravery," Raven said. "You saved my life when you got me away from the cyborg before he could set off a bomb. If he had, I'd be dead and gone. Nano medicine wouldn't have been able to help me."

  "So, your war with the cyborgs can be as lethal as wars are for us earthlings? Your enemies just need the right tactics and weapons to kill you?"

  "True," Raven said. "If we're blasted into a billion specks, nano medicine can't help us. Of course, doctors can use our organic material to clone us. But clones don't have the memories, the knowledge, and the experiences of the beings from which they came."

  "Death is very real for you," Wilson said.

  "Yes, but we have a new choice," said Raven. He shifted in his chair. "Our scientists have started to put human memories in the Global Computer System. As part of that trial, I've chosen to allow scientists to record my brain's memories in a supercomputer. Researchers may be able to restore my basic memories to my clone. And one day I might even be able to donate some of my knowledge to others."

  "That could change things," Wilson said. "But now accidents and war are the major causes of death on Sunev?"

  "Yes," Raven said. "Sometimes, an aggressive new disease will kill someone, but once scientists develop a cure and add it to nano medicine, it's no longer a problem."

  "So, if I'm lucky, I'll live a long life," Wilson said.

  "Yes, you will indeed," Raven said. "You were fortunate that nano medicine was there to save you. And I was lucky that you were nearby to save me from the cyborg."

  "A little luck can help a lot," Wilson said.

  "Your actions were not luck. You listened to your Inner One, and you did not hesitate," said Raven. "Your defense of my team and me were great because you didn't know of our medicine's power."

  "It happened fast, and I had no time to think."

  "You had to trust yourself, and what you did was brave," Raven said. "There will be a ceremony in a week to recognize you."

  "The ceremony will be an honor," Wilson replied. "I thank you for it in advance. Please don't take what I'm about to say in the wrong way. I am grateful for the potential to live much longer and also for how you plan to honor me. But is there some way that I could go back to Earth soon, in the next day or so? It would just be a short visit to change my travel plans. I'm supposed to leave for Scandinavia in a week to begin my sabbatical human genome research. Besides, my parents and friends might be trying to contact me."

  "Could you tell me more about your foreign trips?" Raven asked.

  "I had started two weeks of a quiet vacation at home the day I found you wounded in the park," Wilson said. "I planned to go on several overseas trips after my time off. The first trip is to Sweden – to look at genome research in European laboratories."

  "I already know a few things about your year-long sabbatical leave and your future trips," Raven said.

  "Really?"

  "We keep a small research team on Earth. I had a couple of them make inquiries," said Raven. "So, I've had a chance to think about how we could handle your situation. One possibility is that you could write a note to your secretary explaining that a foreign research institute offered to share its new discoveries with you, but you have to keep them secret."

  "I see," Wilson said. "The research institute is on Sunev, right?"

  "Right. This note would ask your secretary to delay your first trips to Europe. It would explain that your new trip has already been arranged, and will last three months. We'd deliver it to your workplace."

  "I don't think that would work," said Wilson. "It would seem strange. I need to show up at the hospital."

  "I realize that you don't want to lie," said Raven. "But you are going to travel here on Sunev to look into nano science and its link to human DNA research. Our leadership is very happy that you happen to be an expert in this area. A Sunevian team on Earth has been working day and night to look into your background. We believe that you can understand our nano med technology, and that you'll keep it secret until we decide how we can transfer it to Earth's scientists." Raven paused and looked at Wilson.

  "I'm flattered," Wilson said.

  Raven paused, and said, "But there's one condition. We'd like to teach you about our medicine, but only if you sign a nondisclosure contract. We need more time to think about how and when we would let you transfer some nano med knowledge to scientists on Earth."

  "This all sounds great," said Wilson.

  "Before we get into details, I hope you realize that we don't have to act with haste," Raven said. "You don't have to return to Earth right away because you're on vacation."

  "Yes, but I'm supposed to begin my research trip to Scandinavia soon," Wilson interjected.

  "True, but I'll get to that in a minute," said Raven. "First, let me explain that we don't think the police found any evidence of combat near your hospital. There's a small chance someone could come across a piece of a cyborg in the bushes, but the cyborgs always clean up after a fight. And no one from Earth, except you, is missing from the hospital."

  "Nobody saw or heard the fight?" Wilson asked.

  "We've checked and rechecked newspaper, radio, and TV news reports. There were no accounts that gave even small clues that there was an incident," Raven said. "The thunderstorm helped. Those electric storms are so rare in Northern California near the big cities that reports of lightning and thunder dominated the news."

  Wilson leaned forward in his chair. "Your people can trust me when I go back. I'll give you my word and sign the contract. Also, because no one reported your ray wound to the police, they have no reason to question me about the events at the hospital."

  Raven nodded.

  Wilson went on, "And if there are any questions about your treatment in my office, I could tell my colleagues that after I tended to you, I took you off the hospital campus for private care."

  "Between you and me," Raven said, "I believe that you'll be discreet about Sunev, but my superiors can't afford to take chances. It'd be a nightmare if you were to say anything about us that your country's officials would believe."

  "They would think me insane, if I were to tell them about death ray fire fights with cyborgs. I have no proof, not a weapon, not a body, nothing." Wilson shook his head sideways.

  "He's right, Richard," said Lena.

  "Both of you are reasoning this out sensibly," Raven said. "But the Great Leader and his group are fearful that somehow you might slip up and disclose nano med technology before we have a solid plan how to do so. They demand that before you go back we make a detailed contract with you as to what, if anything, you could disclose. Our people need to think about this for a few days."

  "I appreciate that, Richard, but I give you my word not to say anything to anybody on Earth until and unless we've worked out the details," Wilson said. "I must go home at once to show everyone I know that I'm okay."

  Raven smiled. From his face and tone of voice Wilson knew that he had convinced Raven to help him.

  "What would you tell your friends?" Raven asked.

  "I could say I'll be out of the country for a few months to conduct some proprietary research, which I can't talk about until later. Then I would return to Sunev, and we would work out contract details t
hen."

  "Okay," Raven said. "I'll make my best effort to convince my superiors that they should trust you. I could have you sign a short nondisclosure statement right now. In it you would also pledge to come to a complete agreement with us."

  "Sounds good," Wilson said. He breathed easier and relaxed.

  Raven lifted an odd, light purple telephone handset from its cradle on the cafeteria table and pressed a large green button.

  "Hello. Raven here," he said in his native tongue as he spoke both into his computer translator and the telephone's mouthpiece. "I have an urgent matter to discuss with the director about the outlander."

  Raven put his hand over the mouthpiece and looked at Wilson. "The secretary has to interrupt the staff meeting."

  Wilson nodded. Lena beamed. He looked at her perfect face, and her beauty lifted his spirits. Raven listened to the foreign words that came from the phone's earpiece.

  "Hello, Director Blanchar. This is Richard Raven," he said. "I'm sorry to interrupt your meeting . . . uh huh," he nodded as he spoke.

  "Yes, he's here," Raven said. "Yes . . . What I need is your permission to send him back to Earth tomorrow for a short visit so he can delay some of his research trips and assure his co-workers, his family, and friends that he's all right. As luck would have it, he's on a two-week vacation. After that he's to begin a year-long sabbatical leave to investigate human genome research. He could study our nanotechnology and how it fits in with genomics as part of his research."

  Raven paused. "Yes, sir . . . I'm concerned about that, too. He's agreed to sign a short nondisclosure contract to keep our material secret until and if we give him consent to make aspects of it public. When he gets back after the brief trip, he's also agreed to sign a more detailed contract . . . . Uh huh . . . Yes, sir. Thank you, sir. Goodbye."

  Raven hung up. He was slightly rattled, but he began to smile.

  "So, is it a deal?" Wilson asked.

  "Yes," Raven said. "Blanchar said you could go back to Earth for a quick visit."

  "Thank you, Richard," Wilson said, and he sighed. "There's one bit of help I need, Richard."

  "What would that be?"