[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
factories and there aren't any other factories, out here at least. They think
I drive them too hard, those people I've got working for me. But I can afford
to burn them up. I can't afford to burnme up."
He looked around at all the others except Jarl.
Page 115
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
"The rest of you may not agree you're important," he said. "But I do. And
that's be-cause I am maybe the most important."
"Not exactly," said Lily quickly. "Your factories won't be doing anything if
I don't interpret the alien psychologies for all of us. Earth always had
factory management, but it never had alien relations experts, and that's where
the key to success lies."
"And with the trained people to handle the ships to make it all work, don't
forget," said Maura. "Don't push, Age. We're all important people here. We all
know it, and we're all interested in seeing our United Independent Colonies
develop to everybody's best advan-tage "
She looked at Jarl.
"Aren't I right, Jarl?"
"Why, yes," he said. "Self-interest enlight-ened self-interest, of course is
always the best motive. That's why, with all respect to Mark" he glanced down
the table at Paul "we're better off to have lost him. This is a new era, now,
in the Colonies, and his ways belonged to the old. While we "
Down in the landing area the recolonization cruiser finally took off with a
mounting thun-der of engines that momentarily drowned out all possibility of
talk in the Residence library. Slowly, the sound faded, and Brot, who had
turned to look out the window once more, brought his face and attention back
at the library. He laughed at them all.
"There it goes," he said loudly in the new stillness, "leaving the rest of
you sitting here like small frogs in a puddle, trying to blow yourselves up
big in the universe. Well, you're necessary to the machinery, I guess. So if
you weren't already so hell-bent to create yourselves lords of the human race,
some of the real people would have to invent you to do the job. But I goddam
well don't have to like the fact or you. And I don't."
His eyes met Jarl's at the opposite end of the long table.
"And you don't like me," Brot went on. "But you aren't going to do anything
about me. You'll still need the outposters here for another ten years or
so even if you like to pretend you don't and long before then I'll be gone."
He pointed out the window and up in the direction the cruiser had lifted.
"Out there," he said. "That's where the real future is, with the people
who've just left. They've gone and left your kind sitting behind here, talking
about it. And it's out there with them that I'm going to end up, still in the
front of the wave, with my grandchild on the one good knee I've got left, and
the bad taste of Earth, and all of you, too, five hundred light-years behind
me."
"What're you talking about, Brot?" said Age sourly. "Everybody knows you
never had any children. Even Mark was adopted, and he's dead. You can move on
any time you want to, and no tears shed. But don't talk about grandchildren to
me. You'll never have any-thing you can even pretend to call a grand-child any
more than I ever had."
Age turned back to Jarl, opening his mouth to take up the discussion the
cruiser's lift-off had interrupted.
Page 116
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
"The hell I won't!" growled Brot softly, still smiling grimly up at the skies
into which the cruiser, bearing Mark and Ulla under new identities, had now
flung itself out of sight, into free space and the free years to come.
-End-
Page 117
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]