Man of Many Minds

  Chapter 23

  In the next room George Hanlon sank into a comfortable chair, thenopened the cage door and the toogan fluttered out and perched on thechair arm. The young man fitted his mind more closely to the bird'sbrain and began probing. Carefully he studied its every line andchannel, utterly oblivious to everything else.

  His first brief examination brought a slight sound of pleased surpriseto his lips. This bird had a real mind, far better than any he hadpreviously discovered in any animal or bird, even better than a dog's.And he could read everything in it.

  Best of all, the toogan had a pictorial type of mind--it remembered inscenes as well as words. It transmitted an almost perfect likeness ofthe being Hanlon had first known as The Leader and later as His HighnessGorth Bohr--any slight discrepancies being caused by the differencebetween a bird's ability to see and that of humans.

  Like a swiftly unreeling three-dimensional film, Hanlon saw the Ministerworking at his desk, walking about the room, receiving callers, playingwith the bird, eating--and sharing his food with it--talking to itconfidentially as he might have done to a well-trusted aide.

  For over an hour Hanlon sat there, and the bird, seemingly asleep, saton the chair arm without making a move. Finally Hanlon rose, and thetoogan flew onto his outheld arm much as a falcon might ride. In thatmanner they returned to the main office where the others were stillworking.

  They were all amazed at this peculiar situation, but only AdmiralHawarden came even close to guessing what was going on. The memory ofthat astounding performance of the pigeon made him think perhaps thissurprising young man had actually been reading the bird's mind--orsomething equally fantastic.

  Hanlon set the toogan down on a corner of the big desk, then startedwalking toward a corner closet. As he neared it the bird seemed to cometo life. It began screaming, "No need looking there! There's nothing inthere. Nobody's ever to look into that closet! Sic 'em, Pet!"

  It dove straight at Hanlon, beak open and screaming in rage. But theman's hand and mind were quicker. Taking possession of the bird's mindagain, he silenced it and grabbed it by the neck, holding it gently butfirmly under his arm.

  "Open that closet and search it thoroughly," Hawarden snapped.

  Several of the Corpsmen jumped forward, and again the toogan struggled,but Hanlon was holding it firmly by force, as well as tightening hismental control, which the powerful compulsion Bohr had implanted in thebird's mind had momentarily broken through.

  In minutes everything was out of the closet, and while some of theofficers were examining every bit of the contents, others, withpowerful, portable glo-lights, were going over the walls and shelves.There was a three-foot ladder-stool in the closet, and one of themstarted to mount it to search the ceiling.

  But the moment the man touched the stool the bird's mind gave Hanlon aclear picture of a procedure it had witnessed many times. He gasped, andcalled out to the Corpsmen, "That stool! Never mind looking at thecloset itself or that other stuff. Bring the stool out here!"

  The surprised lieutenant jumped down, and carried the little ladder overto where Hanlon was standing with the bird.

  "Unscrew the left rear leg--about the middle, I believe."

  The officer up-ended the stool, and after a moment's work found out howto unscrew the leg--it had a reverse thread. In a few more instants hehad it off, and they all gasped.

  The leg was hollow, and in it were a number of tightly-rolled sheets ofvery thin, tough paper.

  The Corpsman started to unroll the papers, but at a quick signal fromHanlon, Admiral Hawarden stepped forward.

  "I'll take those, Lieutenant. I think, for the time being, at least, weneed search no further. Since most of the papers we have found here arepurely planetary matters, they're not for us to meddle with, even thoughwe have permission to do so. Back to Base--if these are not what we wantwe can start again later."

  As the men filed out, Hawarden activated the visiphone, and got theminister's office at the imperial palace. "Find anything we want there,Captain?" he asked the man who answered.

  "Not yet, sir."

  "Report back to Base, then. I think we've got it here."

  He disconnected and handed the papers to Hanlon who had, in themeantime, returned the toogan to its cage, and now sat down. He saw theyoung man's face fall at first glance at those dozens of rolled sheets.

  "What's wrong?"

  "It's in code," came the explanation reply as Hanlon swiftly examinedeach page. "In code--or in Bohr's native language, whatever that maybe."

  "Ouch! If it's that, we're sunk. Better get Trowbridge on it anyway,hadn't we?"

  "Yes," slowly, "that's all we can do now." After some moments, "GuessI'll keep out of sight for a while. I'll go back to the hotel. You canget in touch with me there. I'm still sort of shaky from that beating Igot, and need a lot of rest."

  "Want the doctor to look you over again?"

  "No, I don't think I need that now. He said to have the dressingsrenewed in two days, so I'll see him tomorrow."

  "Right, Newton. If anything comes up, I'll get in touch."

  "Oh, be sure and let me know about that freighter. You've had no wordyet, I suppose."

  "Only that it's still there, being loaded. The scouts are watching itclosely, ready to blast at first sign of departure."

  "Warn them that we want _all_ of the crew and passengers."

  The two started out, but suddenly Admiral Hawarden stopped Hanlon withhis hand on the young man's arm. "About that business with the toogan.I'm not prying if you don't want to talk, but shouldn't I warn all themen who saw it, to keep quiet?"

  "Shades of Snyder, yes! I got so interested I forgot all about othersseeing me with it. Yes, absolutely, it must never be talked about."

  He again looked pleadingly at the admiral. "I ... I'm sorry, sir ... butat that I know you're smart enough to have figured out most of it. Allright, highly confidential, I can do a bit of mind-reading, andespecially with animals and birds, whose minds are not as complex ashuman's. I can even control 'em to some extent."

  The admiral nodded. "I sort of figured as much, with the amazingperformance of that pigeon. Your secret is safe with me--it certainlymust not be spread around. But I don't mind saying I'm glad it's you hasthat ability, not me," with a half-hearted laugh.

  "It is a load," Hanlon admitted soberly, then brightened, "but it suresaved my neck when Bohr had me prisoner and was about to torture me."

  The admiral looked surprised, then shivered. "The bees! I hadn'tconnected ...", his voice died away, and after another brief hesitationhe left, while Hanlon slowly made his way outside, took a ground-cab,and was driven back to the hotel.

  * * * * *

  About five the next morning Hanlon was awakened by the stealthy sound ofa key in the lock of his hotel room door. His hand slid swiftly underhis pillow, and firmly grasped the blaster there.

  As he saw the door open and a figure slip inside, in one swift movementhe sat up, and switched on the bed light. "Up with those hands!" hecommanded the man who was closing the door carefully, his back stilltowards the bed.

  The hands went up, and the man slowly turned.

  "Dad!" Hanlon yelled in relief, and climbed out of bed. "How did you gethere so soon?"

  His father met him halfway, and said from their embrace, "I was onEstrella when your call came. That's only a few lights from here, andthey sent a speedster." Then he grinned. "I'm glad to see you'relearning to keep your eyes open, even in your sleep."

  Hanlon started dressing while they talked. In swift, concise sentenceshe told his father all that had occurred to him since he started hisjob.

  "Nice work, Spence," his father applauded when he had finished, thengrinned again, "although I ought to spank you for taking such risks,after I told you to take it easy at first. I was a bit worried when youdisappeared, until Hooper reported what you were after. But about yourjob," he continued after a moment, "we had no idea you could get somuch. We merely hop
ed you might find a lead or two for us to work on.But you've practically wrapped this up for us."

  "Unh-uh," his son demurred. "It's far from finished. We've got to get toAlgon and grab those ships. And if any of them, or enough of them, arein shape to fight, that may take some doing ... if we can do it at all.Then there's the job of finding out where Bohr came from, and how muchof a menace his planet or system or whatever it is, will be."

  "Sure, sure, I realize that, Son. But those are incidentals. You'vegiven us the 'what' and 'who' we needed to know. But I see you'redressed, and I'm hungry. Let's go eat."

  As they were breakfasting his father asked for details, and Hanlonexplained about his new mental powers, and how they had helped him. "Ican't do much with men, except to read their surface thoughts," heexplained. "But with animals I can do more. I can follow those surfacethoughts and memories back and down into their total mind, and can takeover and control them. But it won't work with people--humans seem tohave a sort of natural block or screen I can't penetrate."

  Newton's face was a study as he shook his head. "To think my boy can dothings like that!"

  "How do you suppose it happens I can, Dad?"

  "You didn't get it from me, that's for sure," his father grimacedruefully. "Perhaps through your mother, from her father. He was apeculiar duck. They used to call him psychic, for he'd get some of thecraziest hunches--for lack of a better descriptive word. He often seemedto know a lot of things when no one could figure out how he could havelearned them. Say, now that I remember back, he used to have quite a waywith animals, too, although I doubt if he had anything like yourpowers."

  "You said I'd probably develop other mental abilities," Hanlon grinnednervously, "but I certainly never imagined anything like this."

  "Me neither," ungrammatically. "It's weird!"

  They had nearly finished eating when their waiter brought a portablevisiphone to the table. "A call for you, Mr. Hanlon," and he plugged theset into a wall-socket.

  Hanlon flipped the switch and saw Admiral Hawarden's face smiling fromthe screen. "We got the freighter just a few minutes ago," he reported."One of our men daringly mingled with the crew as they were boarding,and jammed the airlock so it couldn't be closed. We arrested them all,with only two of our men injured, and five of the enemy. They'rebringing them into Base now."

  "Fine work, sir. Admiral Newton is here with me--we'll see you in youroff ... wait, sir ... Dad says you'd better come here to the hotel. Room946."

  They were barely back in Hanlon's room when Admiral Hawarden knocked. Heand Newton were old friends, and greeted each other with genuine warmth.

  "That's quite a boy of yours, Newt. He's got the stuff."

  "Yeah, I'm sort of proud of him, myself. He's really done a job,especially for first assignment."

  "Have either of you any orders for me concerning the mopping up?"Hawarden asked, but looked at Hanlon.

  "Ask Dad ..."

  But his father interrupted. "It's your party, Son. Speak up. Right nowyou're not a youngster just out of school, you are the Inter-StellarCorps," he added impressively.

  Hanlon flushed, but there was a sureness in his voice as he answered,that only the bitter experiences through which he had so recentlypassed, and which had matured him so greatly, could have brought.

  "We've got to liberate Algon and capture those new battleships asquickly as possible, of course. But at the same time we must be tryingto find out what planet or system Bohr came from, and take steps to seethey can't harm us. That means we've got to exert every effort to getevery single person who was working with or for Bohr, and especially tofind out if he had any superiors."

  "Right. The fleet should be here in another two days, and then Fergusonwill want to blast for Algon. The other matter will depend on so manythings we don't know yet."

  "Has Trowbridge cracked that code yet?"

  "He reported first thing this morning that he broke it late last night.I've assigned several men to help him, and they should have ittranscribed soon."

  Hanlon turned to his father. "Your men here yet?"

  "They're coming in as fast as they can get here."

  "Better examine those men from the freighter, and have your gang followup all leads. They'll have to break down Bohr's hypnosis to get anyinformation. Although," he paused and his face grew thoughtful, "I'mwondering if anyone besides Bohr really knew all he was planning. I'mbeginning to believe he was a lone wolf."

  Admiral Hawarden nodded in agreement. "I've been forced to the samebelief."

  Something clicked in Hanlon's mind. "The emperor," he exclaimed. "Maybewe'd better have another go at him. I'll bet his mind's a lot freer fromthat compulsion now, and perhaps he can remember more of what Bohrsealed away from his conscious memory."

  Hawarden nodded. "That's a good bet. I'll arrange it."

  Two hours later the emperor was free to receive them, and the four weresoon closeted in his study.

  "It's a strange, weird feeling, gentlemen," he said when they hadexplained what they wanted. "It's almost like trying to read some otherperson's mind. I've felt that Bohr's influence was receding, and I'vebeen trying to see what more I could find."

  He sat silent for a moment, then said slowly, almost in a sing-songvoice as though reading from a printed page, "I knew he was buildingsome ships on Algon, but I did not know they were warships. He told methey were a new type with an entirely new propulsive principle that oneof our scientists had worked out."

  "There's always that possibility, of course," Newton said.

  "Why did he say they were building them elsewhere than on this planet?"Hawarden asked.

  The emperor frowned in concentration, then a peculiar look came over hisfeatures. "That's strange," he marvelled. "You would think I would havebeen sure to ask that, but I cannot find any memory of ever having doneso."

  "Algon had most of the natural resources for the building of ships,"Hanlon ruminated aloud. "There were the mines, the forests, and slavelabor to cut down expenses. It was mostly engineers, scientists andspecial technicians who were there, overseeing."

  "I cannot find in my mind the names of any others who might have been inthe conspiracy with Bohr," the emperor answered another question. "Hebrought only one man to see me, with the request that I present him adecoration. It was the scientist who devised the new drive, he said. AProfessor Panek, I believe ..."

  "Panek?" Hanlon interrupted. "A heavy-set, ruddy-faced, red-headed man?"

  "Yes, that about describes him."

  "But Panek was only one of his gunmen," the young SS man was perplexed."He didn't have brains enough to invent an excuse."

  "I wonder, then, what Bohr had in mind to bring such a man here likethat?" Hawarden frowned.

  "Maybe a trick to help throw His Majesty off guard," Newton suggested.

  "Or else just a sop to Panek's vanity, to tie him closer to Bohr,"Hanlon said. "A thing like that would have tickled Panek."

  "We'll have him rounded up, then."

  "No need, Sire," Hanlon explained. "He was one of those men who weretorturing me, and was killed by the bees."

  The emperor looked at the young man quizzically, and a knowing smileerased much of the tension from his face. "I've heard about thatincident. Wasn't it rather peculiar you were not harmed by any of thoseferocious bees?"

  Hanlon's face was as bland as he could make it. "Not necessarily, Sire.I was sitting still, manacled, you remember. They were moving around andfighting the insects."

  The emperor winked, and Hanlon probed into his mind, receiving thedistinct impression of friendliness, while the surface thoughts weresaying, "I won't pry, but I'd give a lot to know what really didhappen--and how."

  "The Corps thanks Your Majesty," Admiral Hawarden rose to leave, andNewton and Hanlon did likewise. "We'll keep you closely informed ofthings as they break," and the three backed from the study, bowing.