The Namura Stone (The Ammonite Galaxy, book 6)

Chapter 26

THE VISITOR CONTACTED Dessia with some trepidation. He wasn't sure whether he would be able to reach his alter ego there without the rest of the Dessites picking up the mental broadcast, and he was still very wary about the effect the Dessite wall could have on him. But his fears were unfounded; he found it remarkably easy and he was soon chatting to the elected negotiator who was, it turned out, now housed permanently on the Island of the Enjoined.

"Err ... How are things going?" he asked.

Exemphendiss waved a membrane. "Much better. The council have started to implement the changes in the birth control policy, and the chemicals I had developed before I was cryolized have proved extremely useful in preventing budding. The general population is already undergoing extensive treatments, and so far, only the council itself has been declared exempt from overbudding."

"They should have used the same birth control as the rest of the population," said the visitor, looking at them with distaste.

"I thought Arcan wouldn't mind. It was a small gesture and means a great deal to them."

"I suppose it is irrelevant; there are only twelve of them at any given time, aren't there?"

"That is why I agreed. Oh ... and the prognosticator has been revalidated as the prime. They have voted him, and the next four generations of his stock, into cryolization."

The visitor, present by proxy in the council of guardians meeting that his worthy ancestor was currently attending, regarded the large Dessite referred to with a jaundiced eye. "I rather thought he might be. He seems to have quite a knack for self-promotion, doesn't he?"

"Yes, but he has adapted quickly and has been a major force in persuading the other Dessites to agree this alliance. Now they have agreed, their attitude has changed quite dramatically."

"They have no plans to hurt us?"

"At the moment, they seem to have embraced this treaty. They feel that their future will be much more secure if the orthogel entity can transport them to a new system. All the travelers have been working full out to detect a suitable planet. Now that distance is not a factor, they have been given permission to travel far out into the arms of the galaxy."

"The change of attitude is surprising."

"Not when you think about it. The reason for their desperate race to explore the galaxy was the overcrowding in the homeworld. Now that they know they can transfer 50 billion of their population to another planet, they are quite happy to accept limited budding. I think, over time, they will realize that my suggestions should have been accepted long ago."

"I wouldn't expect too much from them." The visitor still wasn't convinced. "And they treat you well?"

"They are wary of me. They do not wish to befriend me, but they are beginning to respect me. They have seen that the chemicals work; already there has been a notable decrease in budding; the overall population is just beginning to fall. There is still a long way to go, however. They need to respect other lifeforms. They remain too convinced of their own superiority, but I am hopeful that gradually we shall see changes."

The visitor flashed his approval. "Then Arcan's plan is working well?"

"Yes. You may tell him so." Exemphendiss hesitated. He wondered whether he should tell the visitor about the feeling he had had recently that some part of the collective mind was successfully being hidden from him. But then, it was only a sensation and he could well be mistaken. Perhaps he should say nothing. He would not wish to cause any misunderstandings over what were, after all, merely unproven suspicions.