The Lady is Blue

Chapter 2

Lucy had hoped for a pleasant evening with her friends, but the emotional cross currents were more antagonistic than peaceful. Maybe it was because Dr. Colin Murti was tired from a long day of work, while she was keyed up with excitement. Roger Fourno glared sullenly across the table. He was often suspicious of her other male friends. She had invited Colin to dinner principally to discover what he had learned about the aliens. He had been in the team of doctors who helped restore the aliens from the frozen hibernation in which many had traveled through space. Her friend, and current lover, Roger, had insisted on attending the dinner too. He was now sulking because she was so eager to talk about the alien arrivals.

"You've talked of nothing else since the spaceships were first sighted," he complained.

"Oh, do you remember, Colin, how excited we were when the astronomers spotted an object moving toward Eden and speculated it was controlled by intelligent beings?"

"Yes, Lucy," a smile softened Colin's austere face. "Although, it was a long time before we were convinced the distant speck was really a spacecraft. Were you involved in the early attempts at communication?"

"I was recruited near the end," replied Lucy. "They had exchanged many signals and translated simple mathematical concepts before my talents were called upon. The translation team wanted my advice on exchanging descriptions of the molecules essential for life. I provided excerpts from our educational files."

"How did you determine what the Atrapako could understand?" Colin asked. "It was kept secret at that stage."

"It is no longer a secret. In fact, I'm writing a news article on the initial communications." Lucy ran her fingertip over the table top. She glanced at Colin. His dark face was alive with interest. Roger toyed with his beer glass, his untidy fair hair falling over his forehead. Lucy smiled at the contrast between black haired Colin with his direct, sober gaze and the volatile, blond and bearded Roger. She wished Roger would take more interest in her achievements.

"We sent a sequence corresponding to the nuclear protons and neutrons of the stable elements. Our sequence paused after the first two rows of the periodic table. Then we waited. Soon the correct response came from the spaceship. They continued the sequence of elements. So, we knew they could understand simple chemistry.

My colleagues were eager to jump to the bigger questions, and I advised that we attempt to transmit pictures. If the aliens had a strong visual sense, communication would be faster and easier. Of course, if the aliens had experienced the world primarily through other senses, there would have been further confusion.

We sent a scheme of our solar system, including all six planets and their larger moons. A time sequence showed the orbital motions around the sun. We were sure they'd recognize the solar system they were approaching. There was a delay while they processed our signals. Finally, they returned part of the same pictures with the addition of a new moving object in the position of their spacecraft."

"Why did they head straight for Eden?" interrupted Roger bruskly.

"Eden is the only inhabitable planet in this region of space. The Space Traders say it is the only inhabitable planet within about fifty light years." Lucy replied patiently.

She paused to recollect the thread of her story. Colin prompted her, "I remember the excitement when the aliens sent moving pictures. But according to your story, they were mostly repeating your message."

"Yes, that is true," said Lucy. "The only time they took the initiative in communicating was near the end. They requested assistance for landing and described the disease that had broken out on the ship."