Chapter 16 Chapter 16 Choose your faction!

At this time, Schwartz was in a cell on the second basement floor of the "Chica Correctional Facility".He lay on a hard bench, feeling uneasy. This place, known as the "Correct," was a colossal symbol of the power that the Patriarch and those around him wielded over the earth.It was a tall, angular building of stone, its dark atmosphere overpowering the barracks of nearby garrisons, just as its shadow loomed over the criminals of Earth, far more effective than the impotent authority of the Empire. Over the centuries, many Earthlings have been imprisoned here awaiting trial.These people either falsified, evaded production quotas, or lived their own time limit, or condoned the crime of others, or committed the great crime of trying to overthrow the local government.There are times when the overly enlightened and generally idle Imperial Government disagrees with a slight bias of Earth justice, and it is possible for the magistrate to annul a judgment.However, this means that revolution is about to break out, or at least riots.

Usually, when the council of the ancients demanded the death penalty, the magistrate always gave in.Anyway, the unlucky ones are only the earthlings... Joseph Schwartz naturally had no idea of ​​the historical background of all this.For him, the only direct vision was a small cell, the surrounding walls were only dimly lit, and the furniture consisted of only two hard benches and a table, besides a room that doubled as a washroom and toilet. small recesses.There weren't any windows to see the sun, and the air coming in from the vents was pretty weak. He stroked the ring of hair around his bald spot and sat up sadly.This aimless escape (where on earth would he be safe?) died shortly and unpleasantly, and he was brought here at last.

At least, he can entertain himself with telepathic contact. But is this good or bad? Back on the farm it had been a strange and unsettling ability whose nature he hadn't known, and whose possible applications hadn't occurred to him.Now, it is an ability with unlimited potential, and it is worth studying carefully. It is very easy to drive a man mad if he has nothing to do but meditate on the fact that he is imprisoned twenty-four hours a day.In fact, he can reach out to the passing jailers, and extend his psychic filaments to the guards in the next corridor, and even to the director's office in the distance.

He deftly turned those hearts over and over again, and under his inspection, they crumbled like walnuts—innumerable emotions and ideas fell from the dry shell. In the process, he learned more about the state of Earth and the Empire than he had learned (or could have learned) in two months on the farm. Of course, among the various things he learned, there was one point that was repeated over and over again without the slightest misunderstanding, and that was: He is doomed to die here! There were no chances, no doubts, and no reservations at all. It could be today, or it could be tomorrow, anyway, he is dead!

This thought had become ingrained unconsciously, but he accepted the fact almost with gratitude. The cell door opened, and he immediately stood up nervously.A man may accept death intellectually, every part of his mind accepts it, but the body is like a primal beast, having no conception of reason at all.The time has finally come! No - no.This incoming telepathic contact contained no murderous intent.He was just a guard, clutching a metal rod, and Schwartz knew what it was. "Come with me," he snapped. Schwartz walked with him, thinking about his own strange power.Long before the guards could use their weapons, before he could possibly sense that force was needed, he could attack silently and without warning.His mind was already in Schwartz's mental palm, and with a slight pinch, it would be instantly expunged.

But why do that?Then there must be other guards coming, how many people can he deal with at a time?In his mind, how many invisible hands are there? Therefore, he has been obediently following the guards. He was taken into a very, very large room.There were already two men and a woman inside. They all spread out their limbs like dead bodies, and they were lying on three very high and very high platforms.But they're not dead, as the three active minds are evident. Paralyzed!Acquaintance? ...are they acquaintances? He stopped and looked at the three of them, but the guard patted his shoulder hard: "Go up."

There is also a vacant platform inside.The guard had no intention of killing, so Schwartz climbed up, knowing what was going to happen. The guard touched his limbs one by one with a metal rod. After a sharp pain, his hands and feet were separated from his body.He only has a head left now, and he doesn't know what is hanging on it. He starts to turn his head. "Pola," he cried, "you're Paula, aren't you? It's the girl . . . " She nodded.He hadn't recognized her telepathy because he hadn't been aware of it until two months ago.At that time, his spiritual power had only developed to the stage of being sensitive to "atmosphere".Looking back now, he remembers it clearly.

But from the contents of her mind, he could learn many things.Lying next to the girl is Dr. Schechter, and the one farthest away is Dr. Bel Avardan.From the young woman's mind he could steal their names, feel their despair, taste every ounce of terror and horror. For a moment he sympathized with them.Then he remembered who they were, and what they were all three of, and he hardened his heart. Let them die! The three of them had been lying there for nearly an hour.This hall was obviously used for gatherings of hundreds of people, and the few prisoners were locked in a corner, almost as if they didn't exist, looking quite deserted and lonely, and there was nothing to say to each other.Alvardan felt as if his throat was on fire, and he kept turning his head back and forth, the only part of his body that could move, but it didn't help.

Schechter closed his eyes, his pale lips tightly pressed together. Alvadan whispered desperately: "Schector, Schector, I'm calling you!" "What? . . . what?" It was a faint whisper at best. "What are you doing? Going to sleep? Think about it, man, think about it!" "What? What's on your mind?" "Who the hell is this Joseph Schwartz?" Then came Paula's voice, thin and weary: "Don't you remember, Bell? That's when I first met you in the department store—a long time ago." Alvadan twisted his neck vigorously, and found that he could lift his head two inches painfully, just enough to see a small part of Paula's face.

"Pola! Paula!" If only he could have walked up to her--he'd been able to do that for the past two months and let the opportunity slip by.She was looking at him too, and her smile was so feeble it was the smile of a statue."We'll definitely get through this, you'll see," he said. She started shaking her head.Then his neck gave up and he felt a sharp pain in his neck tendons. "Schechter," he said again, "listen to me. How did you meet this Schwartz? Why is he your patient?" "Because of the synaptic amplifier, he was a volunteer."

"He accepted the transformation?" "yes." Aivadan thought about this over and over again in his heart: "Why did he come to you?" "I have no idea." "But—he may be an Imperial spy." (Schwartz can't help smiling to himself as he sees his thoughts through. He says nothing, determined to remain silent.) Schechter shook his head from side to side. "An Imperial spy? You mean, because the Patriarch's secretary said that. Oh, nonsense. And what difference does it make now? He's as helpless as we are now... Listen to me, Alvardan, maybe, if we colluded first, they might start later. In the end we might..." The archaeologist let out a hollow laugh, and the friction of the airflow made his throat feel like a burning pain: "You mean, we may survive. After the entire galaxy is destroyed and all civilizations are reduced to ruins? To survive? I might as well be dead!" "I was thinking of Paula." Schechter murmured. "Me too." The other party replied, "Ask her... Paula, should we surrender? Should we steal our lives?" Paula's voice was very firm. She said: "I have decided which side I want to stand on. Although I don't want to die, if everyone on my side is going to die, then I don't want to live." Alvadan couldn't help feeling a little proud.When he took her back to the Sirius sector, they might call her Earth Girl, but she was by no means inferior to them.If someone dares to babble, he will happily smash the other's teeth... It suddenly occurred to him that it was impossible for him to bring her back to the Sirius Star Region—it was unlikely to bring anyone back to the Sirius Star Region, and the Sirius Star Region was likely to disappear soon. Then, he seemed to want to escape this thought, no matter where he fled.He yelled, "You! What's your name? Schwartz!" Schwartz raised his head and glanced slightly at the other party, but he still didn't speak. "Who exactly are you?" Alvardan demanded. "How did you get involved in this incident? What role did you play?" Facing these problems, Schwartz thought of all the grievances at once.Those peaceful days in the past and the endless fear of the present came to my heart at the same moment.So he said indignantly, "Me? How did I get involved? Listen, I was just a little guy, an honest guy, a hardworking tailor. I never hurt anybody, I never bothered anybody, I put my heart and soul into taking care of my home. And then, for no reason, for no reason—here I am.” "Come to Chicago?" Alvardan asked, not quite understanding. "No, not Chicago!" cried Schwartz sarcastically. "I'm in this totally crazy world... Oh, why should I care if you believe me? My world was in the past, my The world has land, it has food, it has billions of people, and it's the only world." This gust of words made Alvadan speechless. He turned to Schechter and asked, "Can you understand what he said?" "Did you know," Schechter said in a tone of mild surprise, "that he had a three-and-a-half-inch appendix? Don't you remember, Paula? He's got wisdom teeth, and he's got hair on his face." "Yes, yes," Schwartz retorted loudly, "I hope there is a tail, so that you can open your eyes. I come from the past, I travel through time, but I don't know how I arrived, but I don’t know what the reason is. Well, don’t bother me anymore.” He added abruptly: "They will be back soon. Let us wait here just to weaken our will." Alvadan immediately asked: "Do you know this? Who told you?" Schwartz didn't answer. "Is it the headmaster's secretary? The short, fat guy with the snub nose?" Schwartz can't see anyone's appearance just by telepathic contact.But—the headmaster's secretary?He had indeed glimpsed such a contact, and it was powerful and belonged to a very powerful person, who seemed to be a secretary. "Boches?" he asked curiously. "What?" Alvardan asked back, but Schechter interjected, "That's the name of the headmaster's secretary." "Oh—what did he say?" "He didn't say anything," Schwartz replied. "I know it myself. We're all going to die. There's no hope." Aivadan lowered his voice and said, "He's crazy, don't you think?" "I dare not say...but the sutures of his skull, they are very primitive, very primitive." Alvardan was taken aback: "You mean—oh, come on, that's impossible." "I've always thought so." For a moment, Schechter's voice seemed to return to normal, as if facing a scientific topic, his mind was transferred to a detached and objective track, and all personal problems were thrown away. In the back of my head, "someone has calculated the energy required to translate matter along the time axis, and the obtained value is greater than infinity, so this kind of thing has always been regarded as impossible. However, do you know that someone else proposed the concept of 'time fault'?" Possibility, borrowing the analogy of faults in geology. For example, there was a spaceship that almost disappeared in full view; there was also a famous "Hall de Vallo incident" in ancient times. One day he walked into his home, It hasn’t come out since then, but it’s not in it either... In addition, there is a planet, you can find records in the galactic theory books of the last century, and three expeditions visited it, bringing back complete records—later Never seen again. "Also, some research results in nuclear chemistry seem to negate the law of conservation of mass and energy. In order to explain this phenomenon, some people assume that some mass escapes along the time axis. For example, the uranium nucleus and the trace but fixed proportion of copper and barium After mixing, under the influence of mild gamma-ray exposure, a resonant system is created..." "Father," said Paula, "stop it! It's no use..." But Avadan interrupted her arrogantly: "Wait a minute, let me think about it. I am the best person to solve this problem, who else is more suitable than me? Let me ask him some questions... Listen to me , Schwartz." Schwartz looked up again. "Is your world the only inhabited world in the galaxy?" Schwartz nodded, and reluctantly replied: "Yes." "But you just think so. I mean, you don't have the ability to travel in space, so you can't verify it at all. Back then, there may have been many other inhabited worlds." "I can't be sure of that." "Yes, of course, what a pity. What about the development of atomic energy?" "We've got the atomic bomb. Using the uranium atom, and the plutonium atom—I guess that's the weapon that brought radioactivity into the world right now. Anyway, after I'm gone, there must be another war... the atomic bomb." Schwartz seemed to have returned to Chicago, to the original world, the world before the atomic bomb.He felt extremely regretful, not for himself, but for this beautiful world... Alvardan muttered to himself, and then said, "Okay, of course you have a language." "On Earth? There are many languages." "What did you say yourself?" "English—after I'm an adult." "Okay, say a few words and let me listen." Schwartz has not spoken a word of English for more than two months.Now, in a tone full of emotion, he said slowly: "I long to return to my hometown and reunite with my compatriots." Alvadan said to Schechter, "Is this the language he spoke when he received the synapse amplifier modification, Schechter?" "I can't judge," Schechter looked very confused. "I heard some strange sounds at that time, and they are also some strange sounds now. How can I distinguish the similarities and differences between the two?" "Well, never mind... how do you say 'mother' in your language, Schwartz?" Schwartz told him right away. "Oh-hoo, what about 'father'...'brother'...'one', I mean numbers...'two'...'three'...'house'...'person'...' wife'……" The two asked and answered questions for quite a while, and when Alvadan stopped to catch his breath, his expression was already full of astonishment. "Schechter," he said, "if this man wasn't really from the past, I'd be in one of my wildest nightmares. He spoke the same language as the inscriptions found in the ten thousand-year-old formation. There are That kind of inscription has been found in more than 20 star systems, including Sirius, Big Horn, South Gate Two, etc. And he can actually say it! This kind of writing was only deciphered a generation ago, and in the entire galaxy, except for myself, everyone knows There are at most ten people who speak this language." "Are you sure about that?" "Am I sure? Of course I am. I'm an archaeologist, and that's what I know." For a split second, Schwartz felt a crack in his mask of alienation.For the first time since coming to this world, he felt his lost self.The mystery finally came out, he was a man from the past, and they accepted it.This proved that his mind was sane, and the lingering doubts were gone.He was very grateful in his heart, but he still maintained a distant attitude. "I must get him." It was Alvardan's voice again, his spirit seemed to be burning in the sacred flame of professionalism, "Schechter, you can never imagine how important this is to archeology—a Someone from the past. Oh, great space! . . . Listen, we can make a deal with them. He's just the proof Earth is looking for, and they can use him, they can . . . " Schwartz interjected sarcastically, "I know what you're thinking. You're thinking that Earth can use me to prove that it's the source of civilization and they'll appreciate it. I tell you, no way!" I've thought about it, and if it worked, I'd have bought my own life that way. But they won't believe me—or you." "We have absolute proof." "They won't listen. Do you know why? Because they have some fixed ideas about the past. In their eyes, any change is blasphemy, even if you present the truth. They don't believe the truth, they Just trust your own heritage." "Bell," said Paula, "I think he's right." Aivadan gritted his teeth: "We can try." "We're going to fail," Schwartz insisted. "how do you know?" "I just know!" This sentence was said with such firmness as a prophet, and Avadan didn't even know how to refute it. Now it was Schechter's turn to look at Schwartz, a strange gleam in his weary eyes. He asked softly, "Did you feel any bad side effects after the synaptic amplifier modification?" Schwartz didn't understand the term "synaptic amplifier," but he understood the implications.They had operated on him, reworked his mind.How many things he understood at once! "No side effects," he said. "But I noticed that you picked up our language very quickly. Now you speak it so well, in fact, that you're almost like a native. Doesn't that surprise you?" "My memory has always been very good." The tone of the answer was very cold. "So you don't feel any different now compared to before you underwent the transformation?" "exactly." Dr. Schechter's eyes hardened, and he said, "What's the trouble? You know, I'm sure you know what I'm thinking." Schwartz laughed dryly: "You mean I can see into other people's minds? Well, so what?" But Schechter ignored him, and turned his pale and helpless face to Alvardan: "He can perceive the hearts of others, Alvardan. How much can I study from him! And we are stuck here , powerless..." "What-what-what-" Alvardan shouted hastily. Even Paula's face showed some interest: "Can you really?" she asked Schwartz. He nodded to her.She had taken care of him, and now they were going to kill her.After all, she was also a traitor. Schechter continued: "Alvardan, remember that bacteriologist I mentioned, the one who died from the side effects of the synaptic amplifier? One of the early symptoms of his mental breakdown was that he claimed to be able to see into the minds of others. He really could. I found out before he died, and it's been a secret to me, and I haven't told anyone—but it's possible, Alvardan, it's possible. Think about it, After the resistance of brain cells is reduced, the brain may be able to pick up the magnetic field induced by the microcurrent of other people's thoughts, and then restore it to a similar oscillation, which is exactly the same as the principle of an ordinary tape recorder. It is out-and-out Psychic power..." Schwartz maintained a stubborn, hostile silence as Alvardan's head turned slowly. "If that's the case, Schechter, we might be able to use him." The archaeologist turned his mind, trying to find a way out of the desperate situation, "There may be a way now, there must be a way. For ourselves, and The whole galaxy." Although Schwartz clearly felt that the other party's spiritual contact was extremely exciting, he was not moved at all.He said, "You mean, you want me to see into their minds? How would that help? Of course I can do other things than see into their minds. Like, how about that?" It was just a slight push, but Avadan suddenly felt a sharp pain, which made him yell out. "I made it," Schwartz said. "Want to try it?" Alvardan gasped, "Can you do that to the guards? And the Secretary of the Master? If so, why did you let them bring you here in the first place? Galaxy, Schechter, it won't be a problem Yes. Now, listen to me, Schwartz—" "No," said Schwartz, "listen to me. Why am I running away? Where can I go? Still in this dying world. I want to go home, but I can't; I Want my people and my world, but I can't have it. So now I just want to die." "But this is a crisis for the entire galaxy, Schwartz, and you can't just think about yourself." "Can't I? Why can't I? Must I be worried about your galaxy? I hope your galaxy dies. I know what Earth plans to do, and I'm happy. The lady just said that she has decided where to stand One side. Well, I've decided which side I'm on, and I'm going to be on the Earth's side." "what?" "Why not? I'm an Earthling!"