I raised my hand, like a kid in school.
"Can I ask why you want gills?" I asked.
"In case you haven't noticed," Lucas said, "we live in the ocean."
I immediately disliked this asshole.
"I did notice," I responded. "I also noticed that you seem to be doing very well within this dome, created, I understand, not by your efforts but by those of a Godship. I also understand that, without Godship assistance, you would all be dead. I also understand that there is plenty of room within Aquarius for additional residents so there seems to be little need for expanding beyond these walls. I also understand that you need our help. I also understand..."
Susan poked me in the side and I stopped.
"I think what my husband is saying," Susan said, "is that years ago, when we lived on the surface, we saw little need to expand beyond land based territory, to the oceans. It's curious that you now see a need to expand beyond your bubble."
"My young friend is perhaps irritated," Hudson said, apologetically, "by our inability to affect an ocean going species. Our ability to feed ourselves is severely limited by what we initially brought to Aquarius, many years ago. The ability to travel over greater distances, beneath the sea, would greatly assist in our survival. Currently, our life span is somewhat less than fifty years." Hudson grinned. "I am an exception."
Shatoya added: "A perhaps greater problem than gills is pressure. We have had some small success with gill production, Althea being an example, but the water pressure at this depth is over a thousand times the pressure at the surface. We have been able to travel short distances from our dome with the aid of bubble suits and have used that ability to gather edible materials. However, these trips are limited to short time intervals. It is our hope that one day, soon..."
"We will emigrate to the edge of the North American Plate," Lucas interrupted. "There, in shallow water, we will roam well beyond the limitations set by our dome. That, as any idiot must surely understand, requires water breathing physiology." Lucas got up and stalked out of the room.
"I apologize for my young friend," Hudson said. "His social skills leave something to be desired, yet he is our most brilliant physiologist."
"But why was Aquarius constructed at the bottom of the deepest ocean?" I asked.
Hudson paused for a moment, then said: "In the days following the solar discharge, the Earth was charred and shattered, lakes boiled away and oceans were agitated–violently. The surface temperatures of most oceans were near boiling. Fortunately, the disorder following the holocaust was well understood well in advance–hence the locations of the Aquarius habitats in deep waters. Aquarius Arctica was badly damaged. Because it was the last to be built–and the construction was rushed–it was located less than a thousand meters below the surface. Of course, all the arctic ice had melted and the land was scorched. Miraculously, there were no fatalities. It was a surprise, to us," Hudson continued, "to learn that there had been a Godship located in the Mariana Trench for thousands of years and its assistance made our transport to this Aquadome possible."
After a moment of silence, where everybody looked slightly uncomfortable, Gill spoke. "We have something to show you," he said. "If you will follow me to the machine room, Gilgamesh is now ready for the transport."
David, obviously aware of what was about to happen, was smiling. Even Susan was happy, her eyes dancing with delight. Indeed, Althea, who had been very quiet, giggled. Was I the only dimwit on board?
We left the Godship and headed for the machine room where we first arrived. Gill asked us to stand by the wall so there was plenty of room in the center of the room. Then bodies began to materialize. First it looked like about a half dozen, but soon the room was filled with very young, brown-skinned children. I recognized them; the Kuna native children on board our Godship.
"As you can see," Gill said, "we have been extraordinarily successful on Gilgamesh. Many of the other Godships also have contributions to make, to the populace of Aquarius."
Susan rushed to the group of frightened children and held one in her arms. "Do you see, Gordie?" she said. "They all have gills."
CHAPTER NINE
Part 9.1
One by one the population contributions from the other Godships arrived. They were Negroid, Caucasian, Mongoloid, many Hispanic types, with oriental types being predominant, many many skin colors from pinkish-white to yellowish to dark brown and almost coal black. As each group arrived, Gill commented on the need for genetic diversity. By the time the last transport was complete, only Shatoya, David, Gill and I were there to watch. Shatoya and Hudson had led the other children away, to introduce them to their new home. None of the young ones looked very happy and many were crying. All had well-developed gills.
"Where are the parents," I asked.
David began to answer, then glanced at Gill who nodded.
"They will remain on the Godships, for the time being," David said. "Eventually, after the children are acclimatized, without parental intervention, the parents will transport to Aquarius. They will live out their lives here. I think they will be quite happy. Everything had been arranged for their arrival some time ago."
"Who knew that all this would happen?" I asked. "The solar storm, the need for the submarine bubbles, the genetic modifications to achieve gills, the transport to the Aquadomes, the..."
"God knew," Gill said. "Although God allows his cosmic laws to govern the unfolding of the inverse, he does occasionally intervene within the domain of probability. That is why he made the laws of science probabilistic in nature–to allow for God's intervention. Indeed, although there are infinitely many possible outcomes for every circumstance, the outcomes which we do not observe occur in alternate realities, parallel universes. So, you see, God plays at the microscopic level."
"And the Godships?" I asked. "Are they microscopic?"
"Aha!" Gill exclaimed. "Godships perform Godly obligations at a macroscopic level. Humans might call their activity 'miracles'."
"So God does the small stuff and his Godships do the big stuff. Then, are you saying that when we hear of miracles, it is the doing of Godships?"
"Often," Gill replied. "Not always. Sometimes they are natural phenomena that just appear to be miracles–from a human perspective."
"So why don't people who claim to have witnessed a miracle also say they witnessed some huge space ship floating in the sky?"
"Remember, solid matter is mostly empty space, between molecules. Godships, if they have no internal life forms, can shrink and be seen just as a small flying object."
"A UFO," I suggested.
Gill looked confused.
"An unidentified flying object," I said. "Often seen by oddballs on Earth."
"Oddballs?" Gill said.
"Never mind," I said, happy that I had Gill confused.
"I might add," Gill said, "that Godships also have the ability to increase inter-molecular distances. That can cause a Godship to disappear. The vessel expands, visible light passes through the space between molecules, the vessel vanishes from sight."
"But God created people with gills. It seems to me that's in violation of some saintly law or another."
Gill smiled and looked at David as though he were giving David some kind of approval.
"Do you remember the pool you saw on our Godship?" David said. "Do you recall that there were aquatic creatures living in those pools? They were extracted from a planet in the constellation Aquila, a planet almost entirely covered in liquid. Not water, mind you, but a liquid that contained the dissolved oxygen necessary for the vitality of those aqua-creatures. The gill structure of those creatures evolved genetically, without God's assistance. Yet, God was able to mimic the genetic framework essential to gill development–and he did that within the random genetic variations of the Kuna natives. God was also able to extract genetic information pertinent to gill structures."
"Do you mean that God copied what was already at hand?" I asked.
"Of course,"
David said. "The genetic construct for gills was the doing of random fluctuations and natural selection, the preservation of favored variants, survival of the fittest. God then enabled those genetic variations in the natives."
"God," Gill said glibly, "is able to do anything consistent with his own nature."
"Aah, you said 'his' nature." I blurted out. "So you do think God is a 'he'."
Gill looked pained. "Yes, my mistake. A Freudian slip of the tongue. It is in my nature to assume that omnipotence is a male attribute."
Susan punched Gill in the side.
"Shame on you!" she squealed. "Chauvinist! Wait until I tell Tiesha."
Gill now looked even more pained. David was hardly able to contain his delight. "Gill, my boy," David said. "I'm afraid there are still things you need to master." David was beaming. So was I. Gill walked off, greatly perturbed.
Part 9.2
The next day I again saw Gill speaking, without words, to Althea. Althea was shaking her head and stamping her feet. She seemed angry. Susan was with me and whispered something in my ear.
"Pardon?" I said. "What did you say?"
"Shh, not so loud. They can hear very, very well. I've noticed that they argue a lot. I'm not sure why, but I believe it's some kind of interaction with Uruk. Leave them be. They will stop their debate when Uruk is ready."
"Ready? Ready for what?"
"I'm not sure, but I think Uruk has something extraordinary planned and Althea is enraged by it. I do know that she was very angry when she saw the gills on the Kuna native children. She can be so sweet and she can also be a brat. The last of the parents of the native children, they were transported earlier. That seemed to calm Althea."
"I hope the extraordinary thing that Uruk has planned happens after we leave. I really don't like this place. Have you noticed the deficient beds? No mattress, no pillow, my back is sore and the food is terrible. How can these people live like this? If we stay any length of time, maybe we can stay inside the Uruk Godship where we can think up some pork-burgers and comfortable beds–or even in our own Godship and just beam down when necessary."
Just then Gill stopped talking to Althea and was walking toward us.
"Don't say anything stupid," Susan whispered.
"Stupid?" Gill said, with a chuckle. "Why would I say anything stupid? Einstein once said 'Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe'."
"No, no," Susan said. "I was speaking to Gordon. He often puts his foot in his mouth."
Gill had an anguished look. "Foot in his mouth...foot in his mouth...foot in his mouth."
"Oh, Gill, I'm so sorry," Susan said. "It's just a silly expression. I just meant that Gordon sometimes says things without thinking."
"Thanks," I said. "That's me, foot-in-the-mouth Gordon. I often have to eat my words. However, that's often tastier than marine algae."
Gill looked confused.
"Gordon, stop that!" Susan said. She turned to Gill. "Eat my words. That's another silly expression. Please ignore my husband."
"Yes, please do," I said. "Everybody else does."
I got struck in the side. Susan had a knack for the rib punch. It hurt.
Gill turned and walked away. He seemed confused. I was delighted.
"Don't you understand?" Susan said, annoyed. "Gill is easily baffled by things he doesn't know or understand. He has the impression that he knows all that God knows, but that's not true. If you say something completely foreign to him, he becomes...well, he becomes..."
"Half-witted," I said.
"Half-witted is an apt description of my husband!"
Susan turned and walked away. She was angry and I was an ass. I ran after her just as she walked through a door which led to a kind of park. I hadn't seen that before. There were actual trees there, small but definitely green and healthy. And grass! I was amazed. There was also a water fountain, a small pool, some statuary and children playing. Susan walked to a bench and sat. I went and sat beside her.
"I'm sorry sweetheart," I said, in my most endearing voice. "I know I can be an ass. It's just that Gill always acts like he knows everything and I know he doesn't. In fact, I'm the one who knows so little–and that's depressing."
"So you'd like others to reside at your level of intelligence, hence your attempts to drag them down, insult them, diminish them."
"That's not fair," I said. "At least I recognize my shortcomings. I'm trying to avoid that behavior, but it's not easy. When I was a kid, my father always made me out to be mentally challenged. I graduated from college at the bottom of the class. My teachers suggested to my parents that I should train to become an unskilled laborer. The only jobs I ever had didn't require any exceptional aptitude. I'm a born loser." I put my arm around Susan. "The only really great thing I ever did was to marry you."
Susan turned her head, paused then kissed me on the cheek.
"Besides occasionally being an ass, you can also be very sweet," she said.
Then she pointed toward the pool. "Did you notice the statue?" she said.
I leaned forward. It was over two meters tall and was set on a stand about a meter off the ground. It was made of bronze, it seemed, and although it was tarnished and worn in places, it gleamed under the bright wall and ceiling lighting.
"It doesn’t look familiar," I said.
"Go and have a closer look," Susan said.
I walked to the statue and stood gazing up at the bronze figure; it had one arm raised, pointing. Suddenly I recognized the face. Shit! It was Harry Clemens!
"Did you know who it was?" I shouted to Susan. "It's our used car salesman!"
Several children stopped playing and came to watch. One girl pointed to the statue. "Founder," she said. "I learned about him in school. He died to help us live."
Part 9.3
We were gathered for dinner in the cafeteria: David, Gill, Susan, Shatoya and the science supervisor, Hudson. I was happy to see that the asshole Lucas wasn't there. The table was filled with plates of blue-green sludge. That was what we were supposed to eat. Fortunately, there were jugs or rapple wine.
I turned to Shatoya. "There's a statue of Harry Clemens in the park. What's the story there?" I asked.
"Statue?" she said. "What park? We have several statues in Aquarius."
"Some young kid called him 'Founder'," I said.
"Ah, yes, the Founder. I remember that from school but have forgotten the story. Perhaps Hudson will know."
Shatoya turned to Hudson.
"Yes, yes," Hudson said. "The Founder. I will tell you the story. It was several centuries ago, before the radiation from the Betelgeuse nova had reached Earth. Before the solar flares were initiated. Before the Earth was scorched. A Godship arrived to warn us. The Godship communicated with the world through the head of the Global Space Council. The council head was then transported to the Godship Uruk, to assist in the design of Aquarius Pacifica. He was also involved with the other seventeen submarine bubbles including Aquarius Atlantica which, though quite small, now holds the greatest number of inhabitants. When the solar flares began, hundred of thousands had already been transported to their submarine habitats. The head of the Global Council refused to be transported until he had organized the transport of those still waiting. He was also in charge of filling the few space ships available for the trip to the moons of Jupiter. Alas, he died while performing what he knew to be his duty, directing traffic, pointing the way to the transport vessels. It is a sad story. Had it not been for his activity, day and night for weeks, rarely sleeping, always supervising–many of us would not be here."
Hudson paused. "What about the statue?" I asked.
"That is Sir Harry Clemens, head of the Global Space Council," Hudson said. "He became the most important man on Earth before and during the solar holocaust."
"Before that," I chuckled, "he was a nobody, a used car salesman."
Susan bashed in my ribs. Damn it! That hurt!
Hudson gave me a
curious look. "You knew about Sir Clemens?"
"Yes, I knew him," I said, looking sideways at Susan. "He was...uh, a great man."
"But that was so long ago," Shatoya said.
"Gordon has been on the Godship Gilgamesh," Gill said. "Our travels have often been at light speed and..."
"Ah yes, time dilation," Hudson said. He nodded his head.
"If you knew him," Shatoya said, "then you must tell us more about our Founder. I shall talk to the school administrator. She will arrange a closed circuit broadcast. Our children will be delighted to hear from someone who actually met the Founder."
I sank back into my chair. It was an awful idea. I looked at Susan. She was laughing, silently.
Part 9.4
My talk was arranged for later in the evening, late enough so that school classes had ended, early enough so all the parents wouldn't be concerned about bedtime for the children. I had never done any public speaking, so I asked Susan to talk about Harry–Sir Harry. She knew of him because I had told her, in my way. She was a teacher, way back when, and would be more comfortable in front of an audience. She refused. In fact, she seemed quite pleased to refuse. As I was explaining why she would be infinitely better than me, she was smiling. I took that as a 'yes'. In fact, it was a 'no' and she was simply amused by my anxiety.
"You'll do fine," she said. "Just be yourself. Uh...let me clarify that. Be kind, do not criticize Sir Clemens, exaggerate his strengths, amplify the image they have of him as Founder. Did you see the statue? Harry was pointing. Here in Aquarius, that's what they remember. He was pointing to salvation, deliverance from solar catastrophe. He was indicating the path to the transportation portals. He stayed behind–and he died."
I listened but found it difficult to imagine myself multiplying Harry's virtues. When I knew Harry, he had very few virtues. When he became the great savior, I was long gone.
"I'll try," I said weakly. "I will try."
After a terrible meal of blue-green ocean sludge, I finished off far too many glasses of rapple. When Shatoya arrived to escort me to the auditorium, I was feeling no pain. In fact, I remember little of that walk. I was trying to recall what Susan had said. I would amplify Harry's image. I stumbled into the large room and immediately heard applause. When I looked around I saw hundreds of children, ages five to fifteen it seemed. They were standing and clapping. Shatoya led me to a raised platform where I was to speak. She waited for just a moment. The children all sat and became quiet. Hundreds of kids and there wasn't a sound. Amazing. In the front row I saw Susan, David and Gill. All three were smiling. Was that a smile? Perhaps a smirk. I could hear Shatoya talking.