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THE TEMPLE OF EDEN
Page 2
Though he had long suspected The Spirit was not of divine origin, he still felt as though he had committed blasphemy. He felt drained of emotion, and decided to wait until the next morning to resume his studies of propulsion.
He crossed the hallway and entered the break room. From the available refreshments, he selected black coffee. After a few sips of the hot liquid, he began to feel better.
His thoughts drifted to the Demons. The Spirit had made an unprovoked attack on Diablo before coming to Eden to establish the colonies. It was now year one-five-nine of the colonies. The attack had taken place about one hundred and sixty years ago.
Since then, the Demons had not only rebuilt their world, but had made good progress in their technology as well. Although not on a level with The Spirit's technology, the Demons were ahead of Eden's technology.
The people of Eden considered such things as radio, indoor plumbing, and automobiles to be wonderful gifts from The Spirit. Paul now knew that the library held knowledge of far more wondrous things, but The Spirit was holding it back from the people. Paul suspected that The Spirit feared losing his power if the people became too advanced.
Paul thought of those who had gone to the sacrificial altar for nothing more than a minor violation of The Spirit's laws. And there were citizens who were flogged or imprisoned because of a complaint against The Spirit's wardens--a cruel, brutal force.
The next day Paul resumed his studies of propulsion. As the days passed, he found the material becoming increasingly easy to understand. He was already on the more advanced levels. He conceded that The Spirit was right about his aptitude for this field. He was actually enjoying the studies.
He learned the rounds of the wardens, and in between rounds he would sometimes search the DV for information about the planet called Earth. He was intrigued with its people, history, and various cultures.
After the fourth week he confronted Limatu. "I believe that I am now ready to study the actual components of the system. Can that be arranged?"
"Yes, Friend Paul. I will show you to the engine room where there is a schematic of the system."
They reached the engine room and Limatu pointed out the schematic. "Now you must proceed on your own, Friend Paul."
"One more question," said Paul. "Have the monks made any progress in locating the defect?"
"So far, our tests have shown only one abnormality. There appears to be a minor flaw in the secondary intake tube, but our computer indicates that the problem is of no significance and requires no repair. As to the loss of communications, we have also found nothing. We are currently at a standstill and awaiting your findings.
After Limatu left, Paul studied the schematic. He located the secondary intake tube and decided to check it out. He did not use the computer, but elected to crawl into the tube itself.
He could not believe what he found; it was almost too simple. Flue moths. Thousands of dead flue moths were clogging the tube, thus leaving the primary tube to do all the work. The pesky bugs had been a problem in the colonies for years, clogging chimneys and smokestacks.
He almost laughed aloud. The incredible robots were programmed to deal with any conceivable problem that might be encountered in space, but the likes of the flue moth were unknown to the programmers.
But in spite of that, the computer should have recognized that there was a major problem in the tube. Paul surmised that there was a malfunction in one of the subordinate computers, but the robots simply did not have the reasoning power to see that. They accepted whatever the computers told them. Paul also reasoned that the communications problem could be traced to a faulty computer.
The Spirit had come to rely too heavily on the robots. The ship would not have reached such a state if The Spirit had allowed the people to learn the necessary skills in science and engineering to oversee the robots.
Paul wondered why The Spirit--the master computer--did not detect malfunctions in the subordinate computers. He concluded that the master computer itself had faulty components.
Paul had dealt with flue moths before and knew that the solution was simple: high pressure water hoses. He now knew how to restore the ship's acceleration. He was also reasonably sure that at least one subordinate computer was malfunctioning--and possibly the master computer itself.
The next morning Paul returned to the library. He scanned the menu for any reference to the severance switch, but strangely, there was no mention of the switch anywhere. The Spirit, unable to order the robots to sabotage the switch, must have erased all references to its location.
Paul had a hunch. Robots were to throw the switch when given the order, therefore the robots must be programmed to know the location of the switch. He scanned the menu for programs on robots. After viewing several programs with no success, he finally found a program with the promising title: "Programming robots for duties unique to Spaceship Defiance."
The program contained descriptions of child rearing, teaching, and even farming. As the program was nearing its end, Paul became aware that someone had entered the library and was standing near him. He glanced up to see a warden. How long had the man been standing there?
He had learned the warden's routine and knew when they made their rounds, but he had become so engrossed in his research that he became careless. He immediately cancelled the program.
"Welcome, warden. I was just getting ready to break."
"I was aware that The Spirit directed you to study programs on propulsion," said the warden, "but all other programs are forbidden to you. I suspect that the program you were viewing did not deal with propulsion, but with duties of the monks. I am placing you under arrest."
He was caught. He knew that denial would be futile.
"Yes, warden, you are right. The program did not deal with propulsion, but it was an honest mistake. I simply pressed the wrong key."
"Save your explanation for The Spirit. Hold your hands out in front of you." The warden slapped handcuffs on Paul's wrists, and then pulled a portable radio from his belt.
Paul had come so close, but now he would go to the sacrificial altar for his trouble. He decided he would not go meekly. As the warden brought the radio up to transmit, Paul charged. The warden was a powerfully built man, taller and heavier than the slightly built Paul.
But Paul had the advantage of surprise. The warden was completely caught off guard. A mere citizen resisting a warden was unthinkable. Paul brought his knee up hard into the man's groin. The warden yelled out in pain and surprise and doubled over, dropping both the gun and the radio.
Paul chopped his cuffed hands to the back of the warden's neck, at the same time bringing his knee up into the man's face. The groggy warden tried to retrieve the fallen gun, but Paul beat him to it.
Not wanting to risk firing the gun, Paul clubbed the warden repeatedly until the man collapsed. Blood was pouring from his head. Paul fished the keys from the man's pocket and removed the cuffs. He checked the warden's pulse, but found no sign of life.
Paul went back to the DV and continued viewing from where he had left off.
"...and finally," the narrator was saying, "the robots will throw the severance switch, terminating Spirit's command and turning the ship over to the people."
The program ended, and Paul was back to where he started; he still didn't know the location of the switch. He thought of Limatu. The robot should know the location of the switch-- unless The Spirit had also erased it from the robot's memory. But the robots seemed to act independently of Spirit, although they were programmed to obey Spirit's orders.
It was time for Limatu to bring lunch to his room. If he hurried, he might catch the robot there.
Limatu was in the hallway, just leaving Paul's room. Paul called out to him. "Brother Limatu, I must speak to you."
The robot stopped and waited for him. "What do you require, Friend Paul?"
"I think I have found the cause of the acceleration problem. I have reason to believe that it may be directly related to a defect in the severance switch. Tell me the location of the switch and I can check to make sure."
"The severance switch is located on console number one in the control center, but there cannot possibly be a connection..."
"Thank you, Brother Limatu." Paul turned and hurried toward the control center. He knew that he must act quickly, for the wardens would soon be looking for their comrade. He had no time to devise a plan; he would have to improvise as he went along.
****
He entered the control center, and as before, the robots ignored him. He located console one, but a robot was positioned there. How would he get the robot to move? From the programs he had viewed, he remembered that robots were programmed to obey orders from humans unless the order conflicted with orders from a higher command or with built-in robotic laws.
"Give me your attention," he commanded.
The robot stopped what it was doing and turned to look at him. "You are to leave the room and wait outside until you receive further instructions from me."
The robot, Z6 stamped on its breastplate, turned and hurried toward the exit. Suddenly, the voice of The Spirit filled the room.
"You fool! Are you trying to disrupt the temple's activities?"
Paul froze. He had forgotten that this level of the temple was still monitored by The Spirit.
"Zulu six, return to your console immediately," The Spirit ordered.
As the robot hurried back to its position, Limatu entered the room. "Friend Paul, I must advise you that there can be no connection between..."
Paul suddenly dove toward console one.
"Keep away from that console," shouted The Spirit, "or I'll have my wardens take you to the altar."
Paul ignored him and began looking for the switch. He could find nothing in the array of switches that looked special, but then noticed a small red lid--not on the face of the panel, but on the side--secured by two clamps.
"Monks, seize this man," commanded The Spirit. "Hold him until my wardens arrive."
Paul released the clamps, opened the lid, and found the severance switch inside. Suddenly, he found himself in the firm grasp of two robots. But before they could pull him away from the console, he managed to throw the switch.
The robots hesitated a moment, released him, and then stepped back. After a few seconds passed, Limatu stepped forward. "Master Paul, we sense that control of the ship has passed from The Spirit to the people of the colonies. Until we are instructed otherwise, we recognize you as commander acting on their behalf."
Paul noticed his change of title from "Friend" to "Master." He also noticed that the robots no longer referred to the ship as a temple.
Now he had to deal with the wardens. Robotic law forbade robots from doing physical harm to humans, so he could not order the robots to harm the wardens. But he recalled that The Spirit had ordered the robots to seize and hold him; apparently seizure, without harm, was not forbidden if ordered by lawful authority. He addressed Limatu.
"As commander, I order the robots to seize all wardens and escort them to lockup."
"That will be done, Master Paul," said Limatu.
"When that task is done, I want all robots, acting in their role of monks, to inform the people that The Spirit has gone to a higher plane and that the temple is now under their control. I will remain as custodian of the temple if that is the will of the people, or they may choose who they will."
In the days that followed, the people did choose Paul as custodian. He had many plans for the days ahead, but of these, three had top priority:
He would have the library moved from the ship and relocated in New Covenant with an annex in Glory.
Now that the ship was fully operational, he planned an expedition to Diablo. He would not seek to destroy the Demons with the ship's awesome weapons, but would let them know that the people of Eden were ready to talk peace.
Finally, he yearned to learn all he could of that distant planet called Earth.
***END***
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