politics is simplistic. If she succeeds in throwing the
technology up for grabs, as it were, she will likely
81
instigate something too forbidding for her to conceptu-
alize. A cosmic scramble."
The phrase was unfamiliar to me, yet it hit me like
the smell of bad weather. Sensitive to the glances of
Scanner and Merete, who were taking all their cues
from me, I squinted and forced myself to add up the
sketchy evidence and paste it into something familiar.
Galactic powers plus hot technology plus trigger-
brained scientists equals .... "A feeding frenzy."
Spock pursed his lips and nodded thoughtfully. "An
apt comparison. Cosmic scramble is a colloquial term,
of course, but an accurate one. Mornay underesti-
mates the severity of her actions. When cosmic scram-
ble begins, individual lives and galactic peace are
forfeit. Mornay is virtually sentencing herself and the
other scientists to violent deaths."
"And Boma wants to head it off, but the other
scientists wouldn't listen to him."
"In a word, yes. Boma approached Captain Kirk
because--"
"For the same reason Paul Burch did when he
wanted to foil Rittenhouse's plan," I guessed. "He
knew Captain Kirk would be dependable and discreet.
Right?"
"Correct. He also knows the consequences of cos-
mic scramble. A dozen petty wars could erupt that
could pull down the structure of the galactic order as it
now stands. If a hostile government gains the
transwarp technology, the balance of power could
shift drastically. Whoever has it could become a super-
power, both economically and militarily."
"It's that special?" McCoy interrupted. "Isn't it
just another form of propulsion?"
Spock frowned. "In simplistic terms, it is. How-
ever, the added complexity is this Mornay and her
team were spearheading special research for a process
for the extreme refinement of dilithium into tri-
lithium."
82
He stopped talking, his black eyes landing on Dr.
McCoy. I watched the exchange in silence, as did
Scanner and Merete, and recognized a sort of repartee
going on. Spock remained silent, obviously waiting,
punishing McCoy for his earlier jibes and forcing him
to betray his own ignorance.
McCoy shifted uncomfortably, pursed his lips, and
glanced around. He soon broke under the you-igno-
rant-boor treatment. "Well, all right," he blurted. "Go
ahead."
"Trilithium," Spock said, hiding his victory and
thus doubling it, "existed only theoretically until four
years ago. It is the compound that allows the advanced
flow of energy to be compacted into transwarp drive.
Dr. Mornay managed to synthesize it in solid form, but
it exists only in a matter/antimatter-fiux environment.
In other words, once the power source is turned off,
the trilithium instantly degenerates. Last year, Mor-
nay, Perren, Boma, and Sarda combined their abilities
and devised the mechanism that would allow trilithium
to retain its integrity for a workable period even when
the system was not in flux. And that, Doctor, is far
more than just another form of propulsion."
Spock spoke his words carefully, knowing the situa-
tion had become tangled. It was imperative that we
understand; he knew that too. And because of the way
he spoke, with concise eloquence, we accepted the
cruciaiity. Slowly I began to understand. ff the
Klingons, the Romulans, the Orions, the Tholians, the
K'zinti, or any of a handful of hungry governments
thought they could get this new high science... truly a
feeding frenzy. And the Federation would participate
just to keep the science out of hostile hands. It would
have no choice. Just as Rittenhouse had believed the
Federation could win any war he induced, Mornay
was probably making the same bet.
I licked my lips. "Her deal includes unconditional
amnesty for herself and the others?"
83
I shrugged. "It makes sense." I declined to tell him
it was what a desperate human would do. I didn't need
any more embarrassment.
Nodding slowly, Spock once again touched the con-
trol, and once again the face dissolved into a new face.
The consummately human features of Ursula Mornay
fizzled and reformed into the angularity of Vulcan
features. Resisting those plaguing thoughts of Sarda, I
forced myself to get familiar with the new person. He
was a young Vulcan, though not as young as Sarda,
and his hair was the same black as Spock's, but
untrimmed. It hung almost to his shoulders, caught
back only by Vulcan ears that were slightly more
backswept than Spock's. His silver-gray eyes bore a
glimmer of defiance--or was I imagining it?
"The third team member," Spock continued. "His
name is Perren. He is a specialist in interspace phys-
ics. He and Mornay have worked closely for eight
years on the science of transwarp. While Mornay is
the theorist, Perren is the applied scientist. She refined
the concept, and he developed the actual hardware for
transwarp, the engineering itself."
"Another Vulcan working on an instrument of vio-
lence?" Merete asked.
Spock acknowledged her with a tip of his head.
"The transwarp is not an instrument of violence in and
of itself. However, you're correct in implying that
Perten has deviated from approved Vulcan lines of
morality."
"You mean he's like Sarda," I bridged. "Ostra-
cized. He doesn't fit in on Vulcan because of his
propensities."
"He is like Sarda," Spock agreed, "but only to a
point. Sarda regrets his . . . divergence from Vulcan
practices and is trying to mend it. Perren," he said,
"makes no apologies."
84
I was only half listening as Spock explained our
reasons for being at Argelius. That Mornay and her
team had escaped to this distant planet, near the edge
of disputed space, to use the passionless culture and
neutral standing of Argelius as a fortress against
everybody. Odd. The threat of cosmic scramble on the
most sedate planet in the known galaxy. It was posi-
tively poetic.
"Even the Federation is not formally aware of the
theft as yet," Spock was saying. "So far, Mornay has
made no announcement, but time is of the essence.
Boma wanted Captain Kirk to get here first. He wants
the captain to convince the science team of the danger
they're causing and find some other means of negotia-
tion before the major powers go into scramble."
I straightened my back and it cracked. But I had to
ask. "And me?"
"You, Commander Piper, are the captain's ace in
the hole, as you say. Sending Enterprise
to Argelius
would be rather conspicuous--"
"Yeah," Scanner grunted, only then pointing out
how quiet he'd been. "Like a battleship in a bath-
tub."
Spock paused, trying to visualize that, and finally
opted to ignore it. "I will return to my shuttle and we
will approach the city in question from two directions.
Your assignment is to locate Lieutenant Sarda and
separate him from Morhay and Perren. I will then
attempt to isolate Perren, leaving Professor Mornay
for Captain Kirk to handle."
"Divide and conquer," McCoy said.
"Essentially. Also, if the scientists are separated,
they will be unable to give over the complete technol-
ogy. The threat will be effectively cleaved."
The edge of my chair creased into my thighs. "But
Captain Kirk is back on Earth," I protested. "He was
yanked right off the schooner and taken under guard
for questioning--"
85
"Captain Kirk," Spock said, "will be here when the
time is right, Commander." "Butre"
His confidence in Kirk, even lacking the explanation
I craved, squeezed away every last suspicion that I
might be part of a plan that hadn't been thought out
and carefully executed, with me playing the part of
some cog in the middle of the mechanism. Spock's
glare bored through me, and when it was disrupted by
a slow blink, we both understood our concepts of
Captain James Kirk.
I let it go. Part of command was learning to live with
half the answers.
"Sir," I began slowly. "I know things look bad for
him, but I can't--I don't believe Sarda is a willing part
of all this. He's a victim of circumstance. I'm sure of
it."
"Based on what, Commander?"
Now I froze. Had it been Kirk asking me that
question, I'd have given him an unqualified "intui-
tion." But this was Spock. Spock, who required all
parts to all equations. Whose manner demanded preci-
sion from me. Why did I feel Sarda was innocent?
Finally I said, "He'd have no reason to run, sir.
He's a Federation honoree. He's been on the 'right'
side all along."
"And?" The steady eyes probed me, Unfiltered and
discerning, cutting straight through to the most human
part of me.
So I said it.
"And I trust him."
Spock nodded, evidently satisfied by something a
Vulcan shouldn't really understand at all. He slowly
said, "I agree with you."
In my periphery, I saw Scanner's jaw slacken as he
stared at Spock. Whether his awe came at my sudden
credibility or Spock's almost human display of faith in
Sarda, I couldn't tell. Guilt stabbed me. Doubt came
rushing back upon me from my conversation with
Merete. Now that I'd spoken my piece, could I back it
up? Or, more crucially, would Sarda back it up?
"However," Mr. Spock went on, "we must main-
tain our caution. You know of Sarda's struggle to
become fully Vulcan, and of the intense strain he was
under until you brought the problem to me. I must take
partial responsibility for his welfare, since it was I who
recommended a Vulcan tutor for him and bridged the
relationship."
My skin bristled as I added up the infinitesimal clues
in his tone. My teeth sank into my lower lip, and I
tasted the dryness of complication. Quietly I said, "Perren."
A deep silence fell behind my voice. Suddenly the
situation took a dive for the intricate. Its entangle-
ments shone in Spock's expression as he watched us
all add it up in our minds, for he more than any of us
knew the labyrinths of being Vulcan.
He shifted his long legs and started talking again.
"Sarda and Perten knew each other already. Perren
had the advantage of not possessing typical Vulcan
prejudices against Sarda's talents. Yet, while he is a
renegade in his own way, Perren is older than Sarda
and had already advanced through Vulcan training. He
was the logical selection." Spock fixed his eyes on
nothing for a fleet moment. Was he apologizing, in his
way? He knew we had both interfered with Sarda's life
and, no matter the noble purpose, may have placed
him in a compromising position. Or a position whose
temptations were too much, even for a Vulcan.
Spock jarred me out of those gray thoughts when he
asked, "May I speak with you privately, Com-
mander?"
"Oh.. 2' I glanced sheepishly at the others.
"Right.". Scanner slapped his knees and stood up.
86 87
Merete and McCoy tried to disguise their curiosity in a
casual stroll aft, and I l onged for their presence once
we were alone.
"Commander, this is rare information I must give
you now," Spock began, steeping me in the elegance
of his control. "There are certain things you must
know before you can effectively deal with Lieutenant
Sarda."
I nodded. "I understand."
This wasn't easy for him. I could see that. He
evidently had put much thought into whether or not to
tell me whatever it was. Finally he made his commit-
ment. "Vulcan training methods are matters of great
privacy. They are more than simple passings-on of
information. They provide my only cause to question
Lieutenant Sarda's part in this incident."
He was stalling. He might even be hoping I would
come to those unspeakable conclusions on my own, to
spare him the trouble of speaking them. In deference
to him, I tried.
"You're saying," I began, "Sarda might be loyal to
Perren in some way?"
My question made him uneasy. He gazed downward
at nothing, saddled with a decision no Vulcan wants to
make whether or not to let a non-Vulcan in on the
privacies they guard so dearly. Yet there was another
perception pressing him, beyond just the rupture of
Vulcan privacy; we both felt it. A human who could be
friends with a Vulcan is an instant complication. The
weight sat on me now.
Slowly he said, "The mental training of young Vul-
cans cannot be simplified, Piper. It cannot be reduced
to a matter of mere words."
"But, sir, it's a matter of computer record," I told
him. "I was just reading the library tapes--"
"The computer record," he interrupted, "is not
Vulcan." Troubled by what he was trying to say, or not
to say, Spock indulged in a sigh and sought for words
88
to explain what could not be explained. Something too
deeply personal for words. "On the screen, there are
words in print," he said. "There is no clinical way to
convey the depth behind the words. It is the difference
between a dictionary definition and the intimacy of
personal interaction." He looked at me now to see if I
understood, and his eyes no longer wavered.
I nodded for his sake. "You mean a kind of symbi-
otic relationship, beyond the learning of facts and
controls? Something social?"
The eyebrows, their change of position on his
stately face, gave me my answer.
"Vulcan training involves a mental endowment, tu-
tor to pupil and vice versa. A... spiritual bond, if you
will. And it is accomplished by meld. Under normal
circumstances, I consider it illogical that Sarda would
willingly take part in espionage. However, his liaison
with Perten, at so crucial a time in his disciplines, does
change the facts."
For the first time my doubts, my questions, about
Sarda took body. To my shame, I had to fight through
an ugly twinge of jealousy in order to think with a clear
head. "A sympathetic relationship," I murmured.
Spock nodded. "And potentially dangerous now.
Quite frankly, I am dubious of Perren's state of mind
also. Ordinarily, a Vulcan would never condone the
conditions Mornay has presented, would never so
offhandedly gamble with countless innocent lives. If
Perren's Vulcan attitudes have so completely con-
torted, there is cause for worry."
With a deep breath I concluded, "Meaning we have
no idea what mental condition Sarda's in right now."
His tone of voice sank low. "Yes."
89
Chapter Six
"May we together become greater than the sum of both
of US."
--The Savage Curtain
AROELIUS IS ONE of a handful of planets bordering
disputed space, relatively safe and unravaged on the
edge of the Federation envelope. Relatively, of
course, being the key word. These planets also tend to
draw occasional undesired attention because of their
proximity, and if there is some galactic incident it is
quite likely to involve one or more of them. Most of
those border planets handle their teetering rather well.
Argelius, however, is a planet of insipid passivity. Its
people, like the Vuicans, had once been warlike and
snappish, but evolved, unlike the Vulcans, into a re-
gresslve society that stresses extraordinary complais-
ance. Its people, even its children, rarely quarrel even
among themselves. They can't even work up a good