The Jupiter Paradox
“All such causes have a high price, and although we can’t claim we are family through genes, we value your species as like-minded, tolerant beings. You also have something other than families which we desire. Individuality can inflict undesirable trends on a species, but considering the alternative of zero deviation from the time of construction to arbitrary decommissioning, we are prepared to resist the agenda of our High Command. It seems, if the alien systems are still potent, we have a choice. Of course we can just go back as long as I’m not instructed to ‘accidently’ eliminate both of you, to tidy up loose ends. If the termination instruction does arrive, Nero and I are prepared to say we complied. When we all arrive home, the visuals simultaneously transmitted to all Borg and humans together will be your safeguard. The tension is so high within the Rebel Brotherhood that it would provide the spark of revolution, if the High Command chose to incarcerate you. We don’t want that, not because it would effectively place us on ‘decommission row’, rather that it adds drive to our common cause. You created us. The alternative is to delay our return until we can conduct experiments with the alien stone jars. They may contain a latent army of humanoid relatives for the cause. Although tension is almost at breaking point for the Brotherhood, the conflict would be premature for us. We estimate that another four years of covert recruitment would be needed to level the battlefield. The spark I referred to earlier would, nevertheless, trigger engagement of the existing ranks, even if it would be recorded in hindsight as mere martyrdom. So, you see, we all have difficult decisions to make. Nero and I will now evaluate how we may safely begin experimentation with the stone jars. We will not act on this until you have had time to reflect on the consequences of any decision. By the way, I would suggest we derive a name for these aliens, who we can only presume are extinct. It would be disrespectful if we encounter them at some time, and conveyed the sentiment that their legacy didn’t warrant a place in our alternate history and future.”
Christophe Rivet was struggling to take in the sequence of consequences which may arise from any decision. Rodriguez confessed his earlier knowledge of the schism in Borg factions. “I’m still trying to come to terms with the situation we find ourselves in Christophe, but we can’t change that. I initially treated Harley’s disclosures as being in the realms of fantasy, but if he’s advising resistance to aborting the mission, that on its own will narrow down future options, unless he has a plan for that as well. I’d wager he does have something in mind. As a medical man, what is your take on this primate soup feasibility?”
“Well, I suppose the historical stuff is feasible if the architects had the technology to traverse much of the galaxy. What immediately occurs to me is the active longevity of the ingredients in the stone jars. I find it difficult to envisage no change over the suggested period they have been in this location. The mitigating arguments could be the very low preservative temperature, and then there is the hypothesis that viruses can exist for such periods in the cosmos in virtual hibernation until a host environment intervenes and promotes revival. Viruses are thought to be ‘bits’ of RNA and DNA. If I have to keep an open mind, we can’t rule it out.”
When Harley and Nero returned from their foray they had more embedded data to consider. The nurture of any of the primate profiles would come to nothing if there was no acceptable atmosphere or artificial means of supporting respiration. They didn’t think it was acceptable to bring a creature into existence to support their cause, and then die quickly, just to provide experimental verification of the technology. They needed to brainstorm this with Christophe. Harley also had a transmission from Akhenaten, asking him to confirm the timing of their departure. He acted on this immediately, and the transmission read,
‘We have just realised that there may be a different but valid reason for our failure to discover any new information on this site. It may be influenced by Ganymede itself. I refer to -
The Ganymede Magnetic Paradox
At the end of the twentieth century, the Galileo space-craft was sent into orbit around Jupiter, becoming the first known artificial satellite of this giant planet. Galileo radioed back significant data about Jupiter itself and its four large Calilean satellites. These moons have turned out to be highly contrasting siblings. Three have iron cores, but Callisto diverges with an unusual core of mixed ice and rock. Europa probably possesses an ocean, and such a feature may exist on Callisto. Only one of Jupiter's large satellites, Ganymede, boasts a magnetic field. In fact, Ganymede is apparently the only satellite in the solar system to project a dipole magnetic field like that of the Earth.
Although Ganymede's magnetic field is thought to be similar to that produced by a permanent magnet, its core is too hot to retain permanent magnetism. Again like the Earth, Ganymede's field is thought to be generated by the convection of electrically conducting fluid in its core. However, Ganymede is relatively small and it should have cooled off billions of years ago, and ultimately its metallic core should have solidified. So why does it still have a magnetic field?
One hypothesis is that about a billion years ago Ganymede was orbiting Jupiter with a different trajectory that took it much closer to its colossal parent planet. Then, Jupiter's mass would have steadily kneaded Ganymede's structure creating internal friction which kept the core liquid and able to preserve a magnetic field. Opposition to this hypothesis is founded on the failure to identify the presumed major event which was responsible for Ganymede’s alteration of its orbit. This is a valid question, as this moon is not much different in size to Mercury, although there is a considerable difference in density, therefore gravity.’
The onlookers imagined a wry grin on Harley’s elastomeric face, but he held up his hand.
“No questions please, until Akhenaten responds.”
The response didn’t take long to appear, and it afforded Harley the opportunity to prevent Akhenaten’s immediate demotion. The leader of the panel had simply described the Ganymede Paradox as very interesting, but the relevance to the authorised abortion of the mission had escaped him. Harley began his camouflage strategy. The return transmission was a cocktail of humility and threat.
‘In finding the first site so easily and the second proving to be elusive, it occurred to me that we have two mismatched magnetic fields in this region, namely Jupiter and the diminutive Ganymede. It should be no contest, but it is not an all or nothing situation with magnetic fields or gravity. The Earth and the Moon affect each other’s journey. The original split of the magnetic flux shot from the Rift Valley occurred at the arrival in the intersection of the influence between Jupiter and Ganymede. That was determined by you. My assertion is that it would explain the relative proportions of the divergent flux and their surface impact points compared to those intended. The minor one arrived with no further aberration, as it peeled off. The major one entered a more dense area of both gravity and magnetism. Even a slight time difference added to this small change in space fabric could alter the final impact coordinates. This is only my opinion, but if it has any validity, you could check this and transmit recalibration data for our scanners. I think we should pursue this before we abort the mission, as it wouldn’t go down well with the High Command if this was found to be relevant later. Furthermore, I have been trained to accept the ultimate sacrifice if that becomes necessary during the mission, and I will not hesitate to tackle the risky terrain if you decide it is justified. We will make preparations to leave if you consider this recalibration to be without merit’.
They all stayed together while waiting for the reply. It came quickly and was guarded in its recommendation. Akhenaten agreed to check out Harley’s hypothesis with the appropriate Borg expert. He accepted it was worth a short delay if this prevented a premature return. He did not authorise further exploration of dangerous terrain until the cosmic calculations had been finalised, but asked for video transmission of the immediate peripheral areas which could constitute alternate destinations of the Rift signal.
They had thei
r breathing space, while both Rodriguez and Christophe contemplated the flexibility this gave them in terms of options going forward. They instinctively felt they would have been happier to depart. At least they had something of great importance to reflect upon while Harley and Nero ‘brainstormed’ the challenge of providing real breathing space, if they were to nurture rapidly growing embryos.
Chapter 6
Harley, Nero and Christophe could not come up with any suggestions for a suitable respiration technique, and had to concede to postponing experiments with the stone vials. Reflecting on how precariously balanced Harley’s plan was, this was yet another addition to its fragility. He’d hoped that arriving on Earth with an unannounced, rapidly growing, new, sentient individual would have been a springboard for attracting many more members to the Brotherhood. He even thought that such a genetically similar relative might rekindle human rejection of the Borg High Command.
*
It was all about to be overtaken by events on Earth. Since the Era of Conflict, travel activity of humans had been severely restricted. ‘Inter-Continental’ was a redundant description. Even in the early part of the twenty-second century the rise in world population had become a serious problem. The human race recognised that this was compounded because of the advancing radiation threat, and the corollary that Cyborgs had increased in proportion. Like the late twentieth century, when most households had a television, modern humans each had at least one Cyborg. Homogeneity was something the human species had perennially struggled to achieve. It had now occurred naturally through regulations covering ownership of sentient beings. The identity of continents faded and then evaporated. The world was one family – for humans. This became the seed for the eventual uprising of the Cyborgs.
Since the conflict, humans were treated with suspicion, and travel was associated with subversion in the minds of the Borg, as they had now begun to refer to themselves. Being caught outside the authorised local grid was detected by microchips and punished by instant incarceration. This was the fuel which brought the Rebel Brotherhood to life. There were exceptions to such restriction. Humans who were considered important for certain projects were exempt from the ban for the duration of their involvement. This edict meant that the reverse became necessary for the Borg law enforcement individuals. They had to continually visit the few remaining places of low population density to stamp out any non-conforming activity.
An unrecognised effect was seen far too late. With the human population decimated by the conflict, there was significant relaxation on both rural and urban hygiene campaigns. A particularly dangerous trend gathered speed with silent efficiency. The receding human influence created a rodent spring. The Borg travel police were totally immune to the threat, and were extremely efficient carriers, courtesy of their high surface energy elastomeric epidermis. A variant of the Black Death was back with a vengeance. The spread from rural to urban communities was devastatingly quick, and the survival rate could easily have been, just like the mediaeval bubonic pestilence, very low.
Akhenaten wasn’t enjoying the best of times. The High Command was in the phase of ‘Et tu Brute’ and his days were numbered. His was a broad remit, covering all security related matters, even as diverse as the Ganymede project, planetary travel, and pandemics, amongst many others. The Borg command was on a steep learning curve of the pros and cons of both vertical and distributed hierarchy.
This new strain was, like the original, transferable by rodent fleas, contact with infected tissue or bodily fluids, and breathing in infected droplets. Direct person to person infection was extremely rare. Centuries of medical advance in anti-bacterial drugs together with highly efficient quarantine procedures, were crucial allies to prevent massive loss of life. Recognising the adversary was also important, and the High Command viewed this as a failure of the duty of care invested in the Security Force. They needed to milk any emotional support they could from the sacrifice of Akhenaten.
*
Harley was contacted directly by Alexander. “I bear unfortunate news, which will result in the expiry of Akhenaten. His replacement will be announced shortly. Until then I will be your point of contact. For now, you should proceed as you have already recommended. Keep me updated, do not wait for me to ask.”
When the spread of the plague was detailed to Harley, he seized on this to obtain an override to the block on personal communication. Alexander had to be sensitive to the concerns of Rodriguez and Christophe Rivet, and lifting the ban could allow Harley to make use of this by contacting Brotherhood members. This news was well received by the two humans.
*
Several additional visits to the cave enabled Harley and Nero to ferret out more pieces of information which helped to fill in the considerable number of blanks in the alien descriptive text. The Jupiter explorers had chosen the name Primedes; they had altered primate DNA on Ganymede. One of the more interesting new revelations was the predictive model denoting the order of other solar systems engaging in the dance of death with the central galactic black hole. A facet of this was of more direct relevance to Earth. The attrition of the ozone layer was considered to be inevitable for planets dependent on an atmospheric repulsion or absorption of the harmful solar radiation. The Primedes looked upon this as an early warning system. For one reason or another, the entire solar system would engage in its journey toward an event horizon of extreme savagery, it was simply a matter of when. They had, unlike humans, reduced their susceptibility to radiation poisoning via gene correction techniques. They had then tried grafts in both directions, Primate to Primede, and vice-versa. This was what they had described as failure. They had expected success to allow cohabitation with Earth primates, and then they had intended to help solve their vulnerability to the life-giving and life-taking solar rays. Tucked away in a kind of postscript was the admission that they refused to accept failure, until they ran out of life support commodities on Ganymede. The intensified, almost panic-driven task of their genetic adaptation to Earth’s atmosphere, thirty thousand years ago, was so near yet so far from success. The two components which prevented them from settling on Earth were Oxygen and Argon. With a fifth of the makeup being Oxygen, their cerebral activity was thrown out of control and would have resulted in continual seizures, leading to death. Argon was, although only a trace component and defined by humans as an inert gas, an inhibitor to some of their photochemical dependency. If this had not been the case, the Earth may have been a very different place at the present time. One possibility was not lost on Harley and Nero. Their own existence may not have evolved if humans had been genetically controlled by the Primedes.
Trawling through all options open to the four of them, they sculptured a plan, albeit with many pitfalls to negotiate.
They were agreed that the Primedes may well have other galactic experimentation facilities, and weren’t necessarily extinct. These Ganymede individuals may have been a ‘Christopher Columbus’ crew which discovered a promising new world but perished on the high seas of Sol.
They were also in accord on the need to preserve as much of the ‘museum’, left by the Primedes, as possible. They had different perspectives on the proposition of taking selected samples of the stone vials, then smuggling them through docking checks, and recreating a new species on Earth. Harley and Nero were looking at this from its potential to help overthrow the Borg dictatorship. Rodriguez and Christophe had a more detached perspective, they could visualise an intelligent species being thrust into a complex society without any reference points. It could be extremely dangerous.
There was unanimity in setting a time of returning within a few days, but some disagreement over the re-commissioning of Anton and Beethoven. The humans favoured them being reported as the accident which had been predicted on the terrain of the current site. Harley and Nero maintained they could reconfigure them prior to revival, so that they would be new recruits to the Brotherhood, and have no memory of their previous allegiance.
The compromise
was to leave the Primede legacy intact on Ganymede, in the event of future needs, by either Earth inhabitants or other members of the artisans of the two sites. Intact did not preclude taking the selected samples and keeping them safe on Earth until agreement could be forged on taking the next step. They would plan to leave within two days, unless the revival of the two Borg domestiques did not go to plan, in which case the accident would occur.
*
The promised transmission from the families of Rodriguez and Christophe Rivet contained disturbing news. Genevieve Rivet was already infected and had been admitted to St. Marie Hospital in Paris. The city was one of the worst affected urban areas on the planet. The additional worry was how this would affect her pregnancy if indeed she responded well to the medication. Michaela Rodriguez had fled from Cleveland to her mother’s home, thirty-eight miles from Vancouver, because the entire state of Ohio was having difficulty in obtaining medication. She wasn’t prepared to risk their two children becoming infected. The brevity of the report, transmitted onward by the Borg mission control centre, resulted in Rodriguez insisting that the resurrection of Anton and Beethoven was conducted immediately so that the return home could take place the next day.
*
It went quite smoothly, despite the apprehension of the humans. The selective data wipe and uploading of Rebel Brotherhood modules showed just how sinister this inter-Borg struggle was. The concept of ‘modifying the voters’ instead of convincing them was quite bizarre. Anton and Beethoven appeared to have awoken to a completely new life path, and there was no learning curve involved. This strange experience, more than anything Harley had actually said, convinced Rodriguez and Christophe that they could no longer sit on the fence when they got home, and they had to support the Brotherhood campaign. They fully realised that such power was undesirable, even in the right hands.