PAGE 9
Impact
by
As the days passed the rigid scheduling of exploratory activities, always practiced by a trade mission, began to break down. The charming savages of this new world put no monetary value on time, and something of their spirit began to infect Lord’s crew. They stopped bucking for overtime; most of them applied for accumulated sick leave–so they could walk in the forest with the native women, or swim in the forest pools. Even Lord found time to relax.
One afternoon, after a swim with Niaga, they lay in the warm sun on the grassy bank of a stream. Niaga picked a blue, delicately scented water lily, and gently worked it into his hair. Slowly she bent her face close until her lips brushed his cheek.
“Must you really go away when the treaty is made?”
“I’m a Lord, Niaga.”
“Does that matter? If you like it here–“
“Niaga, I wish–I wish–” He shrugged his shoulders helplessly.
“Why is it so important for you to build your trade cities?”
As he sought for words to answer her question, the spell of her presence was broken. He saw her for what she was: an extremely beautiful woman, sensuously very lovely, yet nonetheless a primitive–a forlorn child without any conception of the meaning of civilization. “We keep our union of planets economically sound,” he explained patiently, “and at peace by constantly expanding–“
“I have visited the schoolroom your teacher has put up beside the ship. I have seen her models of the many machines your people know how to build. But why do you do it, Martin Lord?”
“The machines make our lives easier and more comfortable; they–“
“More comfortable than this?” She gestured toward the stream and the cultivated forest.
“Your world moves at the pace of a walk, Niaga; with our machines, you could rise above your trees, reach your destination in minutes–when now it takes you days.”
“And miss all the beauty on the way. What point is there in saving time, and losing so much that really matters? Do your machines give you anything–you as a person, Martin Lord–that you couldn’t have here without them?”
* * * * *
The question was unanswerable. It symbolized the enormous gulf that lay between Niaga and himself. More than that, Lord saw clearly that the trade cities would destroy her world utterly. Neither Niaga nor her way of life could survive the impact of civilization. And the exotic charm, the friendly innocence was worth saving. Somehow Lord had to find a way to do it.
* * * * *
Lord was by no means surprised when the first three men jumped ship and went to live in one of the quiet villages. Subconsciously he envied them; subconsciously he wished he had the courage to make the same decision. Although Ann Howard demanded it, Lord couldn’t seriously consider taking measures to stop further desertions.
When Don Howard jumped ship, he brought the issue to a head. Ann maneuvered Lord so that he would have to take a stand. What and how, he didn’t know.
It was the first time since the landing that Niaga had not been waiting outside the ship for Lord. At his request she had gone to the village to find what progress had been made in calling the council of elders. Lord knew where to find her, but after his talk with Ann he walked slowly along the forest path. He stopped to dip his face into the stream where he had first met Niaga. Anything to put off the showdown. Lord was trying desperately to understand and evaluate his own motivation.
He accepted the fact that he had not stopped the desertions because, if enough men jumped ship, the Ceres would be unable to take off again. Lord could then have embraced Niaga’s temptation without having to make the decision for himself. But that was a coward’s way out and no solution. There would always be people like Ann Howard who would not accept the situation. They would eventually make radio communication with the Federation, and the location of Niaga’s world would no longer be a secret.