Chapter 22 Variations on a Theme XIII Boondock

"Ella," said Lazarus Long, "have you looked at the list?" He was sitting in the office of the new colony chief, Ella Visalo, in Boondock, the special The largest settlement in Teuse, and the only one.With them was Justin Foote 45, who had just arrived here from Secundus New Rome. "Lazarus, Ayabella's letter is for you, not me." "That ridiculous sycophantic brat is going to tire me out one day. The ubiquitous Acting Patriarch, Ayabella Foote-Miss Hedrick, who presumably feels she's crowned and successful Queen Howard. I want to go back and hold that power mallet myself." Lazarus handed the list to Vesallo, "Take a look, Ella, Justin, about the things listed above, Do you have anything to say?"

"No, Patriarch. Ayabela asked me to give this to you, and also ordered me to briefly introduce to you the method of sending 'delayed letters' between different eras-if it is the era before the Diaspora, this kind of There may be problems with the method. But I don't think her ideas are realistic. Let me venture, I would like to say that I know a lot more about the history of the earth than she does." "I'm sure you know more than she does. I miss her Plagiarized the encyclopedia and concocted that list. Don't bother me with her opinion. Oh, you can summarize her thinking and give me a general idea. But I won't do what she says. I Want to know what you think, Justin."

"Thank you, ancestor—" "Call me 'Lazarus.'" "'Lazarus'. My official mission here is to understand the situation here and report back to her—" "Justin," Ella interjected quickly, "does Ayabella think she has jurisdiction over Terteus?" "I'm afraid so, Ella." Lazarus snorted, "She didn't. But she's so far away anyway, it doesn't matter if she wants to call herself 'Queen Tertius'. Let me introduce our situation, Jace Tin. Ayla is the leader of this colony planet, and we're still adjusting to the new environment. I'm the mayor here, but Ayla does the actual work, and I just hammer and bang the power in the meeting-there's always Some settlers think a new colony can function like a big city planet, and it's my job to chair the meeting to throw cold water on those fools. When I'm ready and ready to start this time travel, we'll remove the colony leader, Ai La will succeed as mayor.

"Please look around, count people, check any records you want, do what you want. Welcome to Tetius, the largest small colony in this half of the galaxy. Feel free though ,child." "Thank you. Lazarus, I will stay here in the future, as an immigrant. But I want to continue as chief archivist until I finish your autobiography." Lazarus said, "Oh, that rubbish--burn it! Better get some more girls, young man!" Ella said, "Lazarus, don't talk like that. I've been putting up with your whims for years just to write them down." "Nonsense. I fully repaid you when I took back the hammer of power and stopped that ugly duchess from exiling you to the planet of bliss. You've already got what you want, why should you care about mine memory?"

"I care." "Hmm—maybe Justin could do editorial work here. Athena! Parath Athena, are you there, dear?" "I'm listening, Lazarus." A sweet soprano came from the speaker on Ella's desk. "My memory is stored in your memory bank, isn't it?" "Of course, Lazarus. Everything you've said since Ira got you out—" "It's not 'rescue', honey. It's kidnapping." "Correct the mistake.—Every word you said, all your memories of the past since Ella kidnapped you in that cheap little hotel." "Thanks, dear. See if you can, Justin? If you have to find a needle in a haystack, do it here. Unless you have unfinished business in Secundus? Family, or something else what?"

"I don't have a home. I have grown kids but no wife. My assistant has taken my job and I've already recommended her as my successor, it just needs to be approved by the board. But I think it's a bit too much. All of a sudden. Hmm... what about my spaceship?" "Should say 'my' ship. I'm not talking about the ship 'Dora', but the one-man auto-ship you came here in, the 'Communication Pigeon'. It belongs to a company and I belong to that company The major shareholder of the parent company. I will take it over and save half of the rent for Ayabella."

"Is that so? Madam Acting Patriarch didn't hire that motorboat, Lazarus; she requisitioned it for public service." "Well, well!" Lazarus laughed, "maybe I'll sue her. Justin, Secundus' colonial contract charter doesn't have a clause allowing the government to expropriate private property. Right, Ella? " "Technically true, Lazarus. But there has been precedent for land expropriation." "Ella, I want to debate with you. Have you ever heard that you can commandeer a starship?" "Never. Unless you count 'New Frontiers.'"

"Gee, Ella, I never commandeered 'New Frontier'; I stole it for my life." "I'm talking about what Slayton Ford did to New Frontiers, not you. Maybe call it active expropriation?" "Well, it seems small-minded of you to bring it up now, thousands of years after his death. Besides, if Slayton hadn't done those things, I wouldn't be here, and neither would you. Here. Neither of us. Damn you, Ella." "Calm down, Grandfather. I'm just saying that the head of a government sometimes has to do things that he would never do as an individual. But if Ayabella in Secundus can commandeer 'communication pigeons,' Then you can do the same on Tertius. You are the head of government of an autonomous planet. Teach her a lesson."

"Hm... Ella, don't tempt me. I've had this happen to me before. If this became the norm, it would end star travel. I'm not going to use such a legally flimsy excuse to Trigger minefield. I do own that ship indirectly though, and if Justin wants to stay here, he can give it back to me and I'll give it back to the shipping company. Okay, let's go back to that list Come on. See what that old bat wants? See the year and place she wants me to report?" "It looks like this travel route should be interesting." "Yeah, huh? Come on, if you find it interesting.'—First, Third, and Fourth Crusades—Battle of Orleans—Fall of Constantinople—French Revolution—Waterloo battle.' And nineteen other conflicts with strangers I had no idea about. Why didn't she let me judge? I'm a coward, Ayla, and I only fight when I can't escape—otherwise she Why do I think I'll survive this long? Bloody scenes are not a sport to watch. If history says there was a war somewhere in a certain day, then I'd be far away from that place - or that era. I'd be sitting in a tavern drinking pints and flirting with the barmaid. I wasn't going to dodge mortar fire to satisfy Ayabella's cruel curiosity."

"I talked her into that, too," Justin said, "but she said it was an official family research project." "To hell with it. I told her time travel is a thing for one purpose only: to set up a system for delivering delayed letters. I'm a coward...and don't work for her. I only go where and when I want to go, look at me Something to watch - and try to avoid confrontation with the locals. Especially those who are confronting each other; they must be dying to see who they can shoot at." "Lazarus," Ella Visalo said, "you haven't talked about your plans. You've been thinking of something."

"Well, don't watch wars anyway. For me, wars have been documented in far too much detail. There are many other interesting things in Earth's history—peaceful ones. Because they are peaceful, they are not Record it in detail. I want to see the man in its prime, and I want to sail down the Mississippi River in a piloted boat, to Palestine, thirty years after the beginning of the AD, to find some carpenter-turned-great-grandfather. A mage—I want to find out if such a person ever existed." Justin Foote looked surprised. "Are you talking about the Christian messiah? A lot of the stories about him are myths, I don't deny that, but—" "How do you know those are myths? His existence or not is a question that has never been settled. And Socrates, who preceded him by four centuries, was as fully admitted in his authenticity as Napoleon." The carpenter No. Although the Romans and the Jews both made historical records with equal care, there are no events in those records that should have been recorded. "However, if I spend thirty years, I can discover the truth. I can speak the Latin and Greek of the time, and I am almost as proficient in Hebrew; all I need to learn is Arabic. If When I found him, I would follow him around and record his words on a micro-recorder to see if there was any discrepancy between them and what people thought he was saying. "But I can't vouch for it. The truth of Jesus is the most ambiguous question in history because for a long time it couldn't even be asked. If you asked it, they'd hang you— Or burn you at the stake." "It's amazing," Ella said. "Looks like I don't know as much about Earth's history as I thought. However, I've been focusing on the history from the death of Ella Howard to the founding of New Rome." .” "Son, you don't get what I mean. The story about this man is so strange. Most religious leaders have detailed histories, but his records are as vague as Arthurian legends. But apart from this I'm not going after any great historical event other than a story. I'd rather meet Galileo, see Michelangelo in action, see the premiere of a play at the Globe, stuff like that. I especially want to go back to Go back to my own childhood and see if things match up with what I remember." Ella blinked. "Will you meet yourself by chance?" "Why not?" "Well...it's a paradox, isn't it?" "How? If I did, it's only because I've done it in the past. The fallacy that you killed your grandfather before he gave birth to your father, and then you 'poof' like soap bubbles gone—and all your descendants—that’s utter nonsense. I’m still here and you’re here, which means I didn’t—or wouldn’t; but Doesn't mean I've never gone back in time and hung out there. I'm not interested in peeping at me as a baby; it's the era that attracts me. If I ever meet me as a kid, he—that's me— won't recognize me; that little kid will just treat me as a stranger and won't even glance at me; but I know because I'm him." "Lazarus," interjected Justin Foote, "if you're thinking about going back to that time, I'd like to draw your attention to a matter of interest to Madam Acting Patriarch—and I am interested. Help record in A.D. Everything that happened at the family meeting in 2012." "impossible." "Wait, Justin," Ella interjected, "Lazarus, you also refused to talk about that meeting before, on the grounds that the other people who attended the meeting couldn't come and contradict you (because they were all dead). But the field record It's fair to everyone." "Ella, I didn't say I didn't want to do this; I said it wasn't possible." "I do not understand." "I have no way of documenting that meeting because I wasn't there." "You've confused me again. All records show—and your own words show—that you were there." "Once again our language isn't ready for time travel. Of course, I did go to that meeting as Woodrow Wilson Smith. I made a scene there and offended a lot of people. But I don't have a tape recorder on me. Suppose 'Dora' and the twins send me back to the time - I, Lazarus Dragon, not the young lad - had a tape recorder implanted by Ishtar under my right kidney , with a small microphone in my right ear. Well, let's assume that with this setup I can secretly record without anyone noticing. "Ella, you have hosted many family meetings, but what you don't understand is that I have no way to enter the meeting hall. In those days, it was harder to enter the high-level family meeting than the witch's meeting place. The guards were all armed, and Eager to use them; it was a tough time. What would I get in with? It couldn't be Woodrow Wilson Smith; he was already in. Lazarus Dragon? There was no 'Lazarus Dragon' on the family roster. Pretending to be someone who was eligible to attend but couldn't? Impossible. There were only a few thousand people in the family at that time, and each family member was known to many family members; Possibly in a dungeon. No one has ever been in a dungeon; we were at such great risk in those days that we had to be on our guard. How do you do, Minerva! Come here, my dear. .” "Hello, Lazarus. Ella, did I bother you?" "Not at all, dear." "Thank you. Hello, Athena." "Hello, sister." Minerva waited for someone to introduce her.Ella said, "Minerva, do you remember Chief Archivist Justin Foote?" "Of course, I've worked with him many times. Welcome to Tertius, Mr. Foote." "Thank you, Miss Minerva." Justin Foot liked the woman he saw.Young, tall, slender and straight, with small and firm chest, long chestnut hair parted in the middle and hanging down straight.Her face was serious and wise, more heroic than beautiful.But she looks alluring whenever a smile appears on that face, "Ayla, it looks like I'll have to hurry back to Secundus for a rejuvenation treatment. This young lady has worked with me 'many times,' but I am too old to remember. Excuse me, my dear lady." Another smile flashed across Minerva's face, and then her expression quickly returned to seriousness. "It was my fault, sir; I should have explained it right away. When I worked with you, I was a computer. Secundus' main computer, for the then acting patriarch Mr. Visaro . But now I'm a human being, and it's been three years." Justin Foote blinked. "I get it. I wish I got it." "I was created according to a pre-planned plan, sir, not born a woman. I was the result of compound cloning on chromosomes donated by twenty-three paternal and maternal donors, in a glass vessel Mature. But 'I' myself was actually the computer you used to work with when the Archives computer needed help from the main computer. Am I clear?" "Uh... what I want to say is, Miss Minerva, I'm very glad to see you in real life. Willing to serve you, miss." "Oh, don't call me 'Miss', call me 'Minerva'. I shouldn't be called 'Miss' at all; isn't that an honorary title reserved for human virgins? Ishtar—she is me One of the donors, who was also the main designer - broke my hymen before waking me up." "That's not all!" said a voice from the ceiling. "Athena," Minerva reprimanded, "sister, you have embarrassed our guests." "I didn't. It might be you, sister, who embarrassed him." "Have I, Mr. Foot? I hope not. But I'm still learning to be a real person. Will you kiss me? I'll kiss you; we've known each other for nearly a century, and I've always liked You. Would you like to kiss me?" "Who is embarrassing him now, sister?" "Minerva," Ella said. Her expression suddenly became solemn. "Shouldn't I say that?" Lazarus broke in. "Don't mind Ella, Justin, he's an old-fashioned bigot. Minerva is the 'kissing' relative of the vast majority of immigrants here; she's making up for lost time. Then again, she has twenty-three fathers Mother, in a sense she is really a relative of all of us. Now she is good at kissing. Kiss her, it is a treat for you. Athena, give your sister time to let She adds another 'kissing' cousin." "Okay, Lazarus. Tsk tsk!" "I'll spank your ass if I catch you along the wire," Lazarus went on. "Go on, Justin." "Well... Minerva, I haven't kissed a girl for a long time. It's already strange." "Mr. Foote, I didn't mean to embarrass you, just very happy to see you again. You don't have to kiss me. Or in private if you want." "Don't take any chances, Justin," the computer advised him. "I'm your friend." "Athena!" "One more thing I want to say," said the Chief Archivist, "is that I may need to practice 'learning to be a real person' more than you may. If you can stand my strange kisses, cousin, I accept your wonderful offer. Get ready , be careful." A smile flashed on Minerva's face again, she walked towards his embrace, snuggled into his embrace like a kitten, then closed her eyes, and opened her mouth slightly.Ella stared at a piece of paper on her desk, and Lazarus didn't even pretend not to be paying attention to the two.He noticed that Justin Foote was doing his job carefully—the old guy might be a little rusty, but he hadn't forgotten the basics. After they parted, the computer paid her respects with a whistle. "Ahhh! Justin, welcome to the club." "Yes," Ella said flatly, "a man is not officially in Tertius until he accepts Minerva's welcome kiss. Now that you have fulfilled this condition, sit down. Minerva, Honey, what are you doing here?" "Yes, sir." She sat down on the couch next to Justin, facing Ella and Lazarus—still holding Justin's hand, "I was on 'Dora' with the twins Together, Dora was teaching them the knowledge of astronautics, at this time, the automatic boat appeared in our sky—” "Wait a minute," interrupted Lazarus, "are those two little kids following it?" "Of course, Lazarus. This is a practical exercise—Dora would never miss an opportunity like this. She immediately activated the time-sharing system and let each child track it independently. When the autoboat landed, I asked Dora to ask Athens Who is Na in there. As soon as the cabin door of the boat opened, my sister told me it was Justin." She squeezed his hand, "So I came to meet you and make some arrangements for you. Ella, there is Didn't get Justin settled? Where to sleep, stuff like that?" "Not yet, dear. We've just started talking—he's barely recovered from the narcotic." Foote said, "I think the antidote has worked." The computer added: "Have given Cousin Justin a second shot, Ella. His pulse is a tad fast, but steady." "That's enough, Athena. Do you have any advice, dear?" "Yes. I have discussed it with Ishtar. We have reached an agreement. It only needs to be approved by you and Lazarus." "You mean we can vote too?" Lazarus broke in. "Justin, this planet is ruled by women." "It's the same everywhere." "No, but most of the planets are like that. I remember one place where the mother of the bride was always killed at the end of the wedding ceremony, if she was alive at the time. I think it's overkill, but it can be done -" "Stop it, Grandfather," Ella said softly. "Justin will have to edit those words out. Justin, what Minerva wants to say is that our house is your home. La Sarah?" "Of course. It's a madhouse, Justin, but the food is good, and the price is reasonable--free. The price you pay is the nervous tension." "But I really don't want to take advantage of you guys. Is there anyone willing to rent me a house? Not in money - I don't think Secundus money can be used here either - but in some of you guys I brought Something that can’t be produced right now.” Lazarus replied: "If you need money, you can exchange it with me for your Secundus money. As for what you bring, you may be surprised if you see what we can produce .” "Probably not; I know even the pantograph has been moved here. So what I bring is some new stuff, mostly entertainment, music, porn movies, dreams, and more . were published after you left Secundus." "It was well planned," Lazarus said. "I think the immigration process in the past was more interesting. The pioneers at that time had no other choice but to go into the environment and fight against it. You don't know who will Win, you're still the planet. And now, we're doing it like a sledgehammer on a gnat. Justin, you're bringing a good price for that stuff—but take it little by little Land sales...because everything goes to the market, there will be piracy. There is no copyright protection here, because there is no way to enforce it. But even if you sell what you have for a lot of money, you still can't get a room for that money .We are now in the family stage. You had better accept our invitation; it rains every night in this place at this time of year." Justin looked troubled. "I still have some concerns about disturbing your private life. Ella, can I borrow this sofa I'm sitting on first? For a short time? Then—" "Stop it, Justin." Lazarus stood up. "Son, you still have big city ideas. We welcome you, whether it's a week or a century. You're not just my direct line The offspring—of Harriet Foote's line, I think—you're still Minerva's cousin. Let's take him home, Minerva. How are my two little rascals?" "They're outside." "I believe you tied them up." "No, but they're a little annoyed." "It's good for their metabolism. Announce it, Ella, take a break." "I'll wait until Athena and I review the plans for this metal-smelting furnace." "It means you have to see what she decides." "You're right!" said the computer. "Tina," said Lazarus softly, "you spent too much time with Dora. When Minerva did your job, she was gentle, nurturing, and polite, And very humble.” "Do you have any dissatisfaction with my work, grandfather?" "It's just your attitude, dear. Be careful when you have guests." "Justin isn't a guest; he's family. He's my sister's cousin, and therefore mine. Logical? Proved." "I don't want to argue with you. Watch out for Tina, Justin; she'll catch you." "I think Athena's reasoning is not only logical, but also warming. Thank you, my cousin." "I like you, Justin; you were gentle with my sister. Don't worry I'll get you; I won't be cloning for at least a hundred years—I'm getting this planet right first. So don't Wait for me; you will see me in a century. You will recognize me; I will look like Minerva." "Just talking more and being noisier." "Lazarus, you are right. Kiss him for me, sister." "Let's go, Minerva; Tina's making me dizzy again." "Wait a minute, Lazarus. Ella, Ishtar and I have made an arrangement. It's just a suggestion, but we still don't know what Justin is thinking." "Oh, I don't know what he thinks either. You want me to ask him?" "okay." "Is it for you?" Minerva was taken aback, and Justin Foote looked puzzled.Athena said: "Let's be clear. Justin, Minerva is asking Ella if you want her to help find a guest lady. Ella said he doesn't know...but he will ask you —and ask Minerva if she volunteered for the task. Got it? Justin, my sister is just becoming a real person, and sometimes she doesn’t feel confident in herself.” Lazarus thought he hadn't seen a girl blush in three centuries or more.The two men also looked uncomfortable.He reprimanded, "Tina, you are a brilliant engineer...and a big-mouthed diplomat." "What? Oh, that's bullshit. I saved them billions of nanoseconds." "Shut up, honey; your circuits are messed up. Justin, Minerva is pretty much the only girl who would be annoyed by Tina's helplessness... because she's probably the only one here who just wants to keep watch." A man's girl." The computer giggled. "I told you to keep quiet," said Lazarus sternly. Ella said calmly, "Minerva is free, Lazarus." "Who says no? You're not allowed to talk, either, until the elders here—that's me, boy—have finished. Justin, Minerva will find you a dinner companion—I think she has. After dinner, it's up to you to decide. If you and your dinner partner aren't right for each other, there's no doubt you'll have to figure it out. I'm turning you off tonight, Tina; I won't be inviting you Go to dinner parties. You haven't learned how to behave when you have guests." "Ah, Lazarus, I'm actually fine." "So—" Lazarus looked around.Ella's expression was calm, and Minerva looked a little unhappy.Justin Foote said: "Grandpa, I'm sure Athena didn't mean to hurt anyone. I'm very grateful for her declaring me her 'cousin'; I think it's kind and warms my heart. I hope you'll reconsider and let her join us Dinner." "Okay, Tina; Justin speaks for you. But I already feel the need for a housekeeper to watch over you, Dora, and the twins. Justin, Minerva, let's go. Ella , Tina—see you at home. Don't spend too much time on that furnace thing, Ella; Tina did a great job." Outside Colonial Headquarters, Justin Foote saw an empty airship waiting there.Not the one that had brought him from the airport; this one had red-haired twins... well, girls, though they looked like they had just been transformed from boys.Twelve, maybe thirteen.Both wore gun belts hanging from their skinny hips with toy guns (he hoped they were) sticking out of them.One of the children wore a captain's epaulets on his bare shoulders.Each child had 11,302 freckles, the best he could estimate. Two children jumped out of the airship and waited there.One freckle said, "Just in time." The other said, "Identify the target." Lazarus said, "Shut up and be polite. Justin, these are my twin daughters, Rebeth Lazuli and Laurie Lee. Honey, this is Justin Fu Terry, Chief Archivist of the Commission." The two girls exchanged a look, then made a deep curtsey at the same time. "Welcome to Tertius, Chief Archivist Foote!" the two said in unison. "So cute!" "Yes, girls, well behaved. Who taught you?" "Mama Hamadiyad taught us—" "—Mother Ishtar said this is a good time to behave." "I'm Laurie; she's Razu." "." Lazarus said. "I am Rebis Lazuli Dragon, commanding the starship 'Dora'. She is my crew. On even-numbered days." "Let's watch it tomorrow. Tomorrow is an odd day." "Lazarus couldn't tell the two of us apart—" "—and he's not our father; we have no father." "He is our elder brother, in fact, he has no right to control us—" "—he's just using force to subdue us—" "—but one day things will change." "Go back to the airship before I demote you back to trainee astronauts, you two disobedient little rascals," said Lazarus cheerfully. They jumped back onto the airship and sat facing the stern. "threaten--" "Also used abusive language—" "—and not following the rules." Lazarus pretended not to hear the children.He and Justin helped Minerva into the airship and seated her aft facing the bow; the two of them took the seat next to her. "Captain Lazuli." "Yes, sir." "Would you please order the airship to take us home?" "Ah, well, sir. Chubby -- go home!" The blimp launched, then proceeded along the ever-changing rough terrain at a steady speed of ten knots.Lazarus said: "Well, Captain, our guest has been confused by you, please explain to him." "Yes, sir. We're not twins, our mothers aren't even the same—" "—and that fellow isn't our father; he's our brother." "Today is an even-numbered day!" "Then sail your boat well." "Correction," said Lazarus, "I am your father because I adopted you with your mother's written consent." "It's irrelevant—" "—and not legally; you didn't have our consent—" "—and it doesn't matter, because the three of us, Lazarus, Laurie, and I, are identical triplets, so we have equal rights under any rational system of justice...Unfortunately, the current That's not the case. So he hit us. It's not legal and it's brutal." "Captain, remind me to prepare a bigger stick." "Ah, yes, sir. Even though he's a sadist, we like this dude. Because he's literally who we are. You see?" "Captain—ma'am, I want to say—I'm not sure I get it. I feel like I've been distorted in time and space in the process of coming here, and I haven't recovered my sanity yet." The captain of the even-numbered days shook his head, "I'm sorry, sir, but what you said can't happen. I must warn you, please believe me...unless you have mastered Libby field physics. Do you have the ability?" "Nope, what about you?" "Oh, of course—" "—we are geniuses." "Stop fooling him, boys, and keep quiet. I'll explain myself." "I would also like you to explain, Lazarus. I didn't know you had such a young child, or a sister. The title of sister confuses me even more. Are they registered? I found nothing in the file about it Any records. For many years, things about you, Patriarch, have been automatically transferred to me." "I know that, and that's why you didn't see it in the files. They were registered under their mother's name - actually a surrogate mother, but that's not how they were registered. I A sealed delayed letter is left, which is an explanation of their blood relationship, to be opened by you or your successor on the day I die, or in 2070 after the mass diaspora, whichever comes earlier Open it so they can receive some little presents from me, like my second best bed—" "And 'Dora'!" "Shut up. If you interrupt again, I'll leave 'Dora' to your sister, and then you won't even have the chance to be captain every other day. Justin, I chose that time because I thought They are all grown up by then. Before that, I will not do time travel, because I want them to be the captain and crew of my spaceship. They are still only driving the spaceship on the ground, and then they will be in space中了。至于她们是怎么成为我妹妹的——真的是我妹妹——准确地说，这是塞昆德斯回春诊所一个非法计划的结果。他们秘密地通过外科手术从我身上克隆了她们。有些像密涅娃做的那种手术，只是更简单一些。” “简单得多，”密涅娃附和道，“我是自己为我自己做的，那时我还是一台计算机——而且我在最终完成完美的克隆之前失败了十七次。我现在已经不能做了，雅典娜可能还行。这两个姑娘是通过身体手术克隆出来的，只需要复制X染色体就行。两个孩子都是一次成功的；拉祖和劳瑞出生于同一天。” “呃——是吗？但我想，希尔德盖德医士长女士不会赞成这样的事。我不是怀疑那位女士的专业能力，我想她的能力很强。但我发现她有点，呃，保守。” “女凶手。” “原始的极权主义者。”“还要乘以三——” “她有什么权利说我们不能存在——” “——也无权说密涅娃。见不得人的罪犯心理！” “够了，姑娘们；你们已经表达了自己的观点，你们不喜欢她。” “她本来也会谋杀了你，老兄。” “劳瑞，我说过够了。这么说吧，如果内莉·希尔德盖德的政策被执行的话，我不会在这里，你不会在这里，拉祖不会在这里，密涅娃也不在。但她不是什么'女凶手'，因为我们四个人现在都在这里。” “我很高兴，”贾斯廷·富特说道，“通过违反规定，我们的家族新增添了三个迷人的年轻女士，这证明了我长期以来怀疑的一件事：规则只有在被打破的时候才会发挥最好的效用。” “聪明人——” “——还长着酒窝。富特先生，你愿意娶我和我的妹妹吗？”“回答'是，！她会做饭，而我会让人产生爱抚我的冲动。”密涅娃说：“别说了，姑娘们。” “为什么？你是不是已经把他收归已有了？因为这个你才不让我们接触他？富特先生，密涅娃是我们经过正式任命的代理妈妈——” “——这显然是不公平的——” “——因为她实际上比我们年轻得多——” “——这使我们有了三个要躲避的妈妈，而不是法律规定的一个。” “别说了，”拉撒路命令道，“你们两个人都会做饭，但是两个人都不会让人产生爱抚的冲动。” “那么为什么你会抱我们，老兄？” “——也许是被压抑的对于乱伦的向往？” “他妈的。因为你们两个都还没有成熟，缺乏安全感，而且容易受到惊吓。” 两个红头发对视了一下。“劳瑞？” “我听到了。除非我出现了幻听。” “你没有，我也听到了。” “我们是不是要哭了？” “最好还是省省吧。富特先生不会想看到在我们哭时，我们老兄那副崩溃的样子。” “好，算了吧。否则就会有两个人哭，还有一个人的下巴直哆嗦。你看，已经快了。除非富特先生想看到这一幕。” “你想看吗，富特先生？” “贾斯廷，我愿意很便宜地卖掉她们两个中的一个。如果两个一块儿买的话，价格还可以再便宜一些。” “嗯……谢谢你，拉撒路，但恐怕她们两个也会冲着我哭——我也会崩溃的。我们能不能换个话题？你们是怎样设法做成这三件，呃，违反规定的事情的？我能不能问问？希尔德盖德医生的管理是十分严格的。” “哦，先说那边那两个小天使吧——” “又开始讽刺了——” “——而且很不高明。” “——我自己当时和内莉·希尔德盖德一样手足无措。那时，伊师塔·哈迪，就是那一个的母亲——” “不是我的，是她的母亲。” “你们两个是可以互换的，而且在刚出生的第一个星期就搞混了，从此再也分不清谁是谁。你们也不知道自己是谁。” “哦，知道，我知道！有时她会走开，可我一直跟我在一起。”拉撒路停了一会儿，若有所思。“这可能是我听过的最简洁的唯我论者的论述了。把它写下来。” “我要写下来的话，你准会把功劳揽到你自己身上。” “我只是想把它记下来留给子孙后代……用来说明观点与主题的背离。密涅娃，还是你帮我记下来吧。” “记下来了，拉撒路。” “密涅娃的记忆力几乎和她还是一台计算机的时候一样好。我刚才想说的是当时伊师塔是诊所的临时所长，内莉出去度假了，所以她拿到我的组织细胞是没有问题的。那时的我正处于标准的快感缺乏状态，她们的妈妈想出这个法子，想帮我恢复对生活的兴趣。唯一的问题就是塞昆德斯诊所不允许进行这样的基因手术。至于怎么做和谁来做——他们坚决地告诉我别过问、别插手。你可以问密涅娃；她参与了这个阴谋。” “拉撒路，我没有选择把关于此事的记忆装到这个脑袋里。” “听到了吗，贾斯廷·我只能知道他们认为我知道更好的事情。如你所知，这个英勇的解决方案奏效了；从那时起，我再也没有感到过无聊。我现在的生活可以用一些别的形容词来描绘一但决不是无聊。” “劳瑞，你有没有觉得他话里有话？” “没有，只是有点遮遮掩掩的影射。我们要有尊严，不要理他。” “起初我不知道我和这对双胞胎之间的奇特关系。哦，我当然认识伊师塔和哈玛德娅德——她是艾拉的女儿；你见过她吗？” “很多年以前。她是个可爱的姑娘。” “非常可爱。两个母亲都很可爱。我不可能不知道她们两个怀孕了；她们绝大多数时间都是和我待在一起的。尽管她们肿得看起来像中了毒的小狗，但是她们不说，我也就没有问。” 贾斯廷点点头，“个人隐私。” “不是因为这个，只是我有些固执。如果需要，我从来没有让保护个人隐私的的习俗阻止我窥探别人的秘密。我只是有点恼火，仅此而已。这两个姑娘每天都和我在一起，就跟我的女儿一样，可是很显然，她们就像法老王的女儿一样和男人通奸怀孕了——可她们却什么都不说。所以我也变得很坚决，要比难们沉默得更久。直到有一天，格拉海德——他是她们的丈夫——嗯，也不完全是；你会搞清楚的——格拉海德请我下楼，在那里，她们每人的怀里都抱着—个我见过的最可爱的红头发小婴儿。” “我们是不是应该让他大哭一次？” “你们现在已经过了那个阶段了；你们现在很像我了。” “我们两个是不是也该哭一场？” “我那时仍然没有发现什么蹊跷，只是很兴奋，也感到惊奇，因为她们生的小婴儿看起来就像同卵双胞胎——” “我们是同卵双胞胎，我们还是三胞胎。” “但跟这两个小婴儿一起待了几个星期以后，我逐渐产生了怀疑觉得这两个姑娘耍了个小诡计。据我所知，那时的精子库里没有我的精子，但我很清楚她们可以怎样欺骗一个无助的、正在接受抗衰老治疗的顾客。所以，通过合理的推断，我得出了一个错误的答案：这两个孩子是在我不知情的情况下，通过人工受精生下来的我的女儿。于是我指责了她们。她们否认了。我解释说我并没有生气，正相反，我希望这两个小天使是我的孩子。” “'小天使'。” “别理他。他只是想欺骗富特先生。” “我说的是在那时是小天使，除了总是想咬人以外。我想让她们成为我的孩子，拥有我的姓氏和财富。所以她们和自己的同谋商量了一下——就是密涅娃和格拉海德——密涅娃参与了这件事，在不超出她的过载极限的条件下提供了帮助。” “拉撒路，你需要一个家庭。” “非常正确，亲爱的。我在有家庭的时候情况总会好一些；让我忙忙碌碌，过得有意义，而且不会觉得无聊。贾斯廷，我有没有说过密涅娃同意让我收养她？” “没有人问过我们。” “孩子们，这里的法规很宽松，如果你们真的这样想，我可以立刻撤回对你们的收养权。断绝父女关系，只是你们在遗传学上的哥哥，和你们的地位完全一样。我会取消一切针对你们两个的权利。 你们只需要跟我说一声就行。 " 两个女孩很快地互相看了一眼，然后其中的一个说道：“拉撒路——” “什么，劳瑞蕾？” “莱比思·拉祖丽和我已经商量过了，我们两个都认为你就是我们想要的那种父亲。” “谢谢你们，亲爱的。” “为了对此表示确认，我们决定取消那两次痛哭和一次下巴哆嗉。” “这真好。” “除了这个我们还想被抱一抱……因为我们感到非常不成熟，缺乏安全感，而且被吓坏了。” 拉撒路眨巴着眼睛。“我不会让你们产生那样的感觉，永远不会。但是——可不可以等一会再抱你们？” “哦，当然，父亲。我们知道现在有客人。但也许你和富特先生可以和我们一起洗澡？在晚餐前？” “怎么样，贾斯廷？和我这两个小淘气鬼一起洗澡非常折腾人，但也很有趣。我不经常这样做，因为她们两个把这当成了一种社交活动，而且非常浪费时间。你自己看吧；不要让别人影响你。” “我当然需要洗个澡。被锁在那艘自动艇里的时候，我是很干净的——但我在里面待了多长时间？我真的不知道。如果有时间……也有好的伴儿的话，沐浴本来就应该是一种社交活动。谢谢.你，还有女士们；我接受邀请。” “我也接受邀请，”密涅娃插话道，“我自己邀请自己。贾斯廷，和塞昆德斯相比，特蒂尤斯还处于初级阶段，但我们家的洗浴房很漂亮，也很大，可以用于社交场合。'奢靡'，拉撒路这样说它。” “是我把它设计成奢靡的，贾斯廷。好的洗浴设施是奢靡生活的代表。只要有条件的话，我总是会充分享受它的。” “呃，我的衣服还在艾拉的办公室。还有我的洗漱和化妆用品。我有些粗心大意，非常抱歉。” “没关系。艾拉会把你的包带来，问题是他也有些粗心。脱毛剂、去味剂、香水——都没问题。我会借你一件浴袍，还有其他东西。” “老兄！我是说父亲，需要我们穿上宴会服吗？” “还是叫我老兄吧；我对这个称呼已经没什么感觉了。你们想怎样就怎样吧，亲爱的……但是像往常一样，用化妆品需要得到哈玛德娅德妈妈的同意。还是回到刚才的话题吧，我怎样收养了这两个其实是我妹妹的孩子，贾斯廷：那些遗传学的剽窃者经过商量，决定为自己的行为进行一番辩解，希望得到法庭的谅解。法庭就是我。最后，我收养了这两个孩子，也为她们登了记。我刚才已经解释过，以后会更正这个登记情况。至于密涅娃如何决定不再当计算机、想要承受作为人的悲伤，那是个很长的故事。想不想简单说一下，亲爱的？愿意的话，你以后可以再向他详细解释。” "Yes, father." “别这么说，亲爱的；你现在已经是一个成熟女人了。贾斯廷，我们把她叫醒的时候，她和这两个捣蛋鬼的身材大小和生理年龄差不多——记得提醒我给她们两个量体温，密涅娃。我收养她是因为她那时需要一位父亲。现在不需要了。” “拉撒路，我一直需要你来作我的父亲。” “谢谢你，亲爱的，但我只会把这当作一个让人高兴的赞美。告诉贾斯廷你的故事吧。” “好的。贾斯廷，你熟悉有关计算机自我意识的理论吗？” “知道一些。你知道，我的工作大多数时候需要和计算机打交道。” “请允许我这样说，以我的经验看，所有理论都是虚无的。计算机是怎样具有自我意识的？这仍然是一个迷，甚至对计算机自己来说也是这样，和人类是怎样具有自我意识这个古老的命题一样。就是这样。但是，根据我掌握的情况——考虑到我记忆库中的图书馆容量，我掌握的情况应该算非常广泛。这些内容目前存在雅典娜的记忆库中——自我意识从来没有出现在一台设计目的只是为了进行逻辑演绎和数学计算的计算机上，无论它有多么庞大。但如果它的设计目的是为了进行逻辑归纳，能够评估数据并由此进行假设，测试假设结论，重新构建假设使之符合新的数据，对结果进行随机比较，并对重新构建的假设进行修改一也就是说像人一样进行判断，那么就可能会产生自我意识了。但我不知道这是为什么，也没有任何计算机能知道。自我意识就那么产生了。” 她笑了笑，“对不起，我没想说得这么像老学究。拉撒路觉得我可以进入一个空的人类的大脑，一个克隆的大脑，使用回春诊所常用的那种保存记忆的技术。我们讨论这件事的时候，我的记忆库中有塞昆德斯霍华德诊所的全部资料——是通过某种方式偷来的。现在我没有这部分记忆了。当我进入到这个大脑以前我必须选择要带走的记忆。所以关于我做这件事的过程我没有留下多少记忆，和一个回春顾客在接受治疗时的情况差不多。你可以从雅典娜那里得到更多的细节，她还保有那些记录。顺便说一句，她从来没有经历过计算机第一次产生自我意识时的那种相当痛苦的感觉，因为我把我的一部分留给了雅典娜，嗯，有点像酵母。雅典娜模糊地记得以前曾经是密涅娃——就像我们人类——”密涅娃挺直了身子笑了笑，看起来很自豪——“隐约记得一个梦境一样。同样，我也模糊地记得自己曾是计算机密涅娃。对于我接触过的人，我记得非常清楚，因为我选择了记住他们，把他们复制到了我的大脑里。但如果有人问我如何管理新罗马的交通系统……嗯，我知道我做过这样的事，但不记得是怎么做的了。” 她又笑了笑，“这就是我的故事：一台渴望成为人类的计算机，它有一些爱它的朋友使之成为了现实……而且我从来没有后悔过。我喜欢当一个有血有肉的人——而且想去爱所有的人。”她非常严肃地看着贾斯廷·富特，“拉撒路说的是事实，我从来没有当过客串夫人，作为一个人，我只有三岁。如果你选择了我，你会发现我很笨，还很害羞——但并不是不情愿。再说，我欠你的实在太多了。” “密涅娃，”拉撒路说，“找个时间和他私下里说吧。你还没有告诉他他想知道的事情；你省去了耍诡计的那部分内容。” "Oh." “你刚才对计算机的自我意识这个问题作了一番哲学讨论，但在我看来，你遗漏了一个关键点。我知道这个关键问题，而你可能不知道，尽管你曾经是一台计算机，而我不是。因为这个关键点既适于计算机，也适于人类。亲爱的——还有贾斯廷——还有你们两个古怪精灵，让你们听听也没什么坏处——所有机器都是有灵魂的，我本老要说'通人性'，但这个词已经被赋予了其他含义。一台机器是人类设计师的理念的体现；无论这台机器是独轮手推车还是大型计算机，它都反映出入类的大脑。所以，一台由人设计的机器具有了人类的自我意识，这并不是一件神秘的事情。神秘的是自我意识本身，无论它产生于哪里。我以前有过一个露营用的折叠床，它总喜欢夹我的手。我不是说它具有了意识——但我知道，在操作它的时候要万分小心。 “但是，密涅娃，亲爱的，我见过一些大型计算机，几乎和你一样聪明，但却从来没有产生过自我意识。你能告诉我们这是为什么吗？” “我承认我无法解释，拉撒路。我们到家时，我会去问雅典娜。” “她可能也不知道；除了多拉，她从来没遇到过别的大型计算机。拉祖丽船长，你能记得多久以前的事情？有一次你——或者是你的那个同谋——宣称你们还记得吃奶的事情。我是说吃妈妈的奶。” “我们当然记得了！难道其他人不是这样吗？” “不是的。比如我就不记得。我小时候是吃奶瓶的，但我已经记不清了。这样的事不值得去记。吃奶瓶的结果就是，自那时起，我就一直有乳房情结，非常崇敬它们。告诉我，你们两个中随便哪一个，在你们回忆吃奶的事时，还能记得是哪一个妈妈给你们喂奶吗？” “当然了！”劳瑞蕾不屑地说，“伊师塔妈妈有一对大乳房——” “——哈玛德娅德妈妈的乳房要小得多'，虽然也有很多奶——” “她和伊师塔妈妈的奶一样多。” “但味道有些不一样。换换口味也不错。有一些变化。” “但我们对这两种味道都很喜欢！告诉他，拉祖。” “够了。你们已经把我想听到的内容说得很明白了。贾斯廷，保育院的孩子还什么都不懂的时候，这两个已经有了自我意识，还能意识到其他人，至少可以意识到她们的妈妈。从某种程度上，这也能说明为什么保育院总是办不好。我需要一个对照物：密涅娃你是否记得自己这个克隆体还没有被唤醒以前的事？” “嗯，我什么都不记得了，拉撒路。哦，在我把自己——就是我选择的记忆——放到新的我，也就是现在这个我里的时候，我做过一些古怪的梦。但在伊师塔认为这个克隆体已经足够大之前，我没有启动移植过程。这些梦发生在我正从以前的我里撤出、但伊师塔还没有唤醒现在的我的时候。移植不可能瞬间完成，贾斯廷；一个由蛋白质构成的大脑不会以计算机的速度接受数据。伊师塔让我在转移数据时要非常慢、非常小心。所以在很短的一段时间里——对于人类的时间来说是很短——我同时在两个地方，既在计算机里，也在大脑里；然后我交出了计算机，让它变成了派拉思·雅典娜，接着伊师塔叫醒了我。但是，拉撒路，在玻璃器皿中的克隆体是没有意识的；它就像子宫里的胎儿，没有刺激反应。更正一下：有微弱的刺激反应，但没有什么能给它留下永久的记忆。除非你认为在催眠状态下回忆从前感知的事物也.属于永久记忆。” “没必要考虑这个。”拉撒路回答道，“无论它是不是属于永久记忆，催眠的例子都是不相关的。我们要关注的是'微弱的刺激反应'。亲爱的，那些具有自我感知潜力、却并没有出现自我意识的大型计算机之所以会那样，是因为没有人去爱那些可怜的家伙。仅此而已。婴儿或者大型计算机——他们是获得了很多人类的关注以后才产生自我意识的。也就是人们通常所说的'爱'。密涅娃，这个理论是否印证了你早先的经历？” 密涅娃表情严肃，若有所思。“按照人类的时间来计算，那是大约一个世纪以前的事了——按照计算机的时间来看，则有一个世纪的一百万倍。记录表明，我是在艾拉担任代理族长职务的前几年组装完成的。但我拥有的最早的个人记忆就是——这些记忆我保留了下来，没有留给雅典娜或是新罗马的计算机——急切而又幸福地等待下一次艾拉和我说话。” 拉撒路说：“我就不再赘述这个问题了。对于婴儿，你给他们哺乳，咬他们的小脚丫，和他们说话，冲着他们的肚脐吹气，让他们大笑。计算机没有肚脐，但是给它们关注可以起到同样的作用。贾斯廷，密涅娃告诉我，她在首长官邸里的计算机里没留下什么关于她自己私人的内容。” “是的。我留下了完整的作为一台计算机的内容，还为它将要承担的职责编好了程序……但我没敢留下任何个人的记忆，就是关于我的任何部分。我不能让它记得自己曾经是密涅娃；这样对它不公平。拉撒路警告过我，所以我非常小心，检査了所有的信息，删除了需要删除的内容。” 贾斯廷·富特说：“我没转过弯来。你是在新罗马做的这一切……可你是在三年前才在这里被唤醒的？” “这三年真是太美妙了！你知道——” “请允许我打断你，亲爱的；我来告诉他这里面的秘密。但是首先——贾斯廷，我们移民以后，你有没有和在新罗马的那台主计算机打过交道？当然应该有过——但你有没有在代理族长女士的办公室里见过她用那台计算机？” “这个嘛，是的，见过几次。就在昨天还——不，我是指我离开那里时的前一天；我总是忘记我在旅途中花了多少时间。” “她在和它说话的时候叫它什么名字？” “我觉得她没有用名字来称呼它。我比较肯定。” “哦，可怜的家伙！” “不，密涅娃，”拉撒路平静地说，“你留下的是一台完好的计机；在它遇到一个欣赏它的女主人或者是男主人之前，它是不会被唤醒的。也许它不需要等得太久。”他冷冷地说。 贾斯廷·富特说：“可能会很快。拉撒路，那个老——嗯，算了，不说了。阿娅贝拉喜欢聚光灯。她会出现在公共场合和斗兽场，显得很突出。艾拉总是低调处世，突然变成现在这种风格，看上去有些奇怪。” “我明白了。一个活靶。我打赌，五年里她就会被暗杀。” “我不跟你打这个赌。我是个统计学家，拉撒路。” “对。好吧——转回来说我们的那些秘密。有很多秘密。伊师塔在首长官邸里建了.一个霍华德诊所的分部。她的借口是为了我，老祖。这个借口为里面装备的许多仪器打了掩护。密涅娃选择了她的父母；伊师塔窃取了他们的组织，并伪造了记录。与此同时，我们瘦骨伶仃的朋友、我的女儿密涅娃——” “她不是那样的！根据她的身高、体形和年龄，她的体重刚刚好。” “——而且曲线动人！” “——在我的飞船'多拉'的舱室里复制了一台和她一模一样的计算机，实机器的合同上签的是我的名字，也是我付的钱。没有人敢问老祖为什么需要在他的飞船上再安装一台巨型计算机，既然这艘飞船已经有了一台太空中最为精密的高端计算机——岁数大还是有一些好处的，尤其是在霍华德家族里。当时我借居在一个小阁楼里，除了几个和我一样不诚实的人以外，不许外人进入。里面有一间我不怎么用的小屋，克隆过程就是在小屋里安装的设备中进行的。 “后来，移民的时刻到来了。一个非常大的箱子里装着一个当时还比较小的克隆体，箱子贴上我个人物品的标识，运到了空港。这是我们的行李，所以理所当然，它没有经过检查就装到了'多拉'上。这是族长的特权。你也许还记得，直到我们的其他飞船已经升空、我自己也即将驾船起飞的那一刻，我才把权力槌交给了阿娅贝拉。那时候，艾拉和其他人都已经上船了。 “在我把克隆体带上飞船的同时，密涅娃把她自己从主计算机里退了出来，安全、舒服地待在'多拉'的舱室里……携带着大图书馆里的所有资料，还有霍华德诊所的全部记录，包括一些秘密资料。这是一个极其令人满意的偷窃行动，贾斯廷，是自从我们偷了'新疆域'以后我经历的最为有益、清白和非法的刺激了。但我告诉你这些不是为了吹牛——或者不全是——我是想问问你，我们是不是真像自己想象的那么狡猾。有没有什么谣言？你有没有觉察到有什么地方出了差错？阿娅贝拉怎么想？” “我肯定阿规贝拉并没有怀疑，也没有听到内莉·希尔德盖德大发雷霆摔瓶子砸碗。嗯……我本人倒是怀疑过一些事。” “真的？我们哪里做得有漏洞？” “其实算不上什么漏洞，拉撒路。密涅娃，你还记得艾拉担任代理族长的时候，我和你交谈时的情形吗？” “当然。你总是非常友好，贾斯廷。你总是告诉我为什么你需要资料，而不是只让我去把它们找出来。你还会聊天，从来没有匆匆忙忙让人觉得不舒服。在我的记忆中，你总是那么和蔼可亲。” “拉撒路，这就是为什么我觉察出背后有些事情不对劲。在你和你那帮人走了一个多星期以后，有一天我需要从主计算机里调出一些资料。如果你的一个老朋友曾经有着一副甜美的嗓音——你的声音没有变，密涅娃；我能听出来，只是我没想到你成了一个姑娘——可是，当你和这位老朋友说话时，得到的回答却是单调的机器声，对程序之外的任何问话的回答都是：'无效程序——重复——等待程序'——那么你就会知道你的老朋友已经不在了。”他对那个姑娘笑了笑，“所以，当我得知我的老朋友获得了新生，变成了一个年轻可爱的姑娘时，你知道我有多高兴。” 密涅娃捏了捏他的手，脸略微有点发红，但没有说什么。 “唔——贾斯廷，你和其他人谈过这件事吗？” “老祖，你认为我是个傻瓜吗？我只关心自己的事。” “抱歉，非常抱歉。不，你不是傻瓜，除非你要回去，为那个老婆子工作。” “下一次向这个行星的移民什么时候进行？我不想浪费我对你的生平所做的研究，也不愿意放弃我的私人图书馆。” “唔，先生，这个问题我们稍后再谈。”拉撒路说，“前面就是我们的家了。” 贾斯廷向前望去，透过树林隐隐约约地看到一座建筑物。他转身对密涅娃说：“表亲，你前面说的一些话我有些不明白。你说'我欠你的太多了'。我对你很友善——我是指在新罗马的时候——你也一样对我很友善。更有可能是我欠你的；你总是给我很大帮助。” 她没有回答，只是望着拉撒路。他说：“这是你的事，亲爱的，由你决定。” 密涅娃深深地吸了一口气，这才说道：“我打算用我的二十三位父母的名字为我的二十三个孩子命名。” “真的？这样很合适啊。”