Chapter IX: Court Is Dismissed

Insistently the communicator on Pollard's desk buzzed and Miss Farragut called him. The doctor excused himself and left them alone.

"There must be proof," insisted Carroll.

"There has been plenty of it," she told him.

"There's one thing that your alien brain in a human body will not do," he said. "The rest can be managed. You can falsify records--perhaps you were a natural child of Terran parents--Terran parents with alien brains--as yours is now. I don't know but I'll find out."

"How?"

"Pollard's psychiatric notes," he said explosively. He headed for the examination room and looked around. There, behind the door, was a pile of papers on a small table. To get at them Carroll nudged the door shut. It went closed with a faint thud.

Almost instantly afterwards there came the sounds of many feet in the other room.

Rhinegallis screamed something out of fright and peril. There were the sounds of a scuffle, after which came.... Silence!

Carroll hurled the door open and raced across Pollard's office toward the teleport. As he reached there he saw the last traces of Rhinegallis's feet being dragged over the bottom of the wire circle into the mirror. With a cry of anger, Carroll hurled himself into the teleport just as the office door burst open to admit Pollard and Majors.

Carroll's return passage through the teleport was rough. He bumped someone and his force sent them sprawling. Then he was through and facing Kingallis, who was still reeling backwards.

Carroll plunged forward and caught Kingallis by the throat. The alien twisted out of Carroll's grasp and fought back. Carroll hit him hard and followed it with an insane rush that carried them to the far end of the cellar, where Kingallis tripped on a small box and went down with Carroll on top. Carroll rapped the alien's head against the concrete floor and stunned him.

Kingallis returned almost instantly.

Carroll looked down in his face and snarled, "Now--why?"

"Why?" asked the alien defiantly.

"Yes--why? Why is all this going on?"

"The universe is not big enough to hold us both," snapped Kingallis.

"Then it is true. You and your people have been suppressing our research because you fear that we will be able to beat you. And we will, Kingallis. We will!"

"You won't live long enough," snarled the alien.

Carroll's mind worked rapidly. If nothing else, he had now discovered the truth of why. The alien culture wanted universal conquest. To gain it, they were suppressing all research on the Lawson Radiation, which was their main hope for victory. Instead of fighting to suppress it, they had found it much easier to weasel their way in and fake a report here and line there with a mere handful of men. No science could advance when true discoveries were reported as failures and false data were supplied to send the investigators along blind trails.

But now there was real danger. Since Terra was cognizant of the peril Terra would be destroyed. Destroyed or conquered early--the aliens not waiting for the normal development of their plans of expansion.

Carroll looked around for something to tie Kingallis with. And he saw--

Rhinegallis, supine upon the floor, a wide thick strap constricting her ribs. Her eyes were closed. The pulse in her shapely throat was fluttering weakly.

"You swine!" said Carroll.

Kingallis threw him off, leaped to his feet and raced for the teleport disc. He plunged through as Carroll dropped to the floor on one knee and started to fumble at the heavy strap.

* * * * *

He tore his fingers and he cursed, and he looked wildly for something to cut the thing with. His eyes caught the tinsnips on the bench and he arose to get them as Pollard came through the teleport.

Back in Pollard's office the psychologist looked at the perfection of the silvery plane and shuddered mentally. Then he said, "I don't know what's up, but I'm going--through!"

Majors nodded. He had not seen Carroll using the thing at all. His mind was baffled but not psychopathically afraid of any gadget that made men disappear so quickly.

Pollard stepped gingerly into the circle and came through. It was like walking through a ring. There was neither pain nor strain nor feeling. He might have been stepping over a slight, wide sill. Then he was looking down at Carroll, who was fumbling at the strap. Carroll cut it through as Pollard knelt beside the girl.

Then as Pollard made an instant check of the girl's heart and sighed with relief, Carroll rose and turned on the doctor.

"Now," he said, "are you satisfied?"

"Satisfied?" echoed the doctor.

"They almost got her!" snarled Carroll.

"Oh?"

"The teleport is theirs. They have many of them. They were worried about discovery, so they came and--"

"They did?" asked the doctor sarcastically. He turned to Majors. "I was wrong," he said.

"Wrong?"

Pollard nodded sadly. "I believed that Carroll would not direct his hate towards anything living. I did not anticipate his fastening the embodiment of his hallucination upon a human being!"

Carroll turned to Pollard with a glassy stare. "Just what do you mean?" he asked in a flat voice.

"That was an attempt at sheer wanton murder!" replied the doctor.

Majors looked down at the girl and his face went black with anger.

"Why," he said, "that's Rita Galloway!"

Pollard looked at Majors. "Who?"

"Rita Galloway. The head librarian over at the Scientific Section of the Foundation Library."

"She is Rhinegallis of the aliens," said Carroll quickly.

Pollard shook his head. Majors growled. He started to speak and then closed his lips tightly.

"Go ahead," said Pollard.

"All right," snarled Majors. "It was my fault!"

"Your fault?" exploded Pollard.

"Yes. The day after Carroll took that delivery job from little Sally, he spent the evening in the Library looking up some rather complex stuff. Miss Galloway was called upon quite often, so she said, and came to me because she knew we were interested in Carroll.

"Shut up, Carroll, and sit down before I kill you! I told her the entire score and she said that if Carroll was truly as interested as he seemed she was going to ask for a leave of absence and see that he was helped. He seemed to be interested in her."

"Does helping him include running off to Wisconsin with him?" asked Pollard.

"They had words with her brother Kingston," said Majors. "Seems that her brother was concerned about her reputation, and said as much. Carroll made some remark about there being little in common between them, that no human being would find her interesting from a physical standpoint, just as she would find any normal relationship with any human being completely devoid of satisfaction.

"Kingston Galloway instantly took this to be a slur upon his sister's character and he jumped Carroll--also making it quite plain that he would stand for no more foolishness. Carroll clipped him hard and left, taking Rita with him. I got that from Kingston, who was out loaded for murder."

Pollard nodded. "A complex case of misdirected opinions," he said with a grim smile. "Carroll thoroughly believes that she is alien and as such incapable of forming any true association with a human. He says so and her brother misconstrues his belief into an insult to her character."

Majors turned on Carroll. "This is a matter for the police," he snapped. "Come along!"

Carroll paused, looking down at the girl. Pollard scooped her up across his arms and went through the teleport. By the time that Carroll and Majors followed Doctor Pollard was working over the girl in his laboratory.

Carroll shrugged. "If he fails," he said, indicating Pollard, "we might be able to hold an autopsy."

Majors turned away, sick at heart.

* * * * *

Attorney Barnett rose impressively.

"Your Honor, and Gentlemen of the Court," he said. "We do not deny the allegation. We wish to point out, however, that despite my client's state of mind he has and will be of continued value to civilization.

"Incarceration in a penitentiary will not permit him to continue his research. He should be permitted this outlet. Therefore, for my first witness I call Doctor Harold Pollard."

Pollard was put through the legal ritual and took the stand.

"Pollard, what happened to James Forrest Carroll?"

Pollard cleared his throat. "James Forrest Carroll followed the pattern of several of the top physicists working on the Lawson Radiation," he said. "May I express a pertinent opinion?"

"Objection!" shouted prosecution.

Judge Hawley frowned. "Is the opinion based on the crime?"

"No, your honor. It is pertinent to all such cases."

"Objection overruled."

"May I take exception?" asked Frank Barre, the State's Attorney.

"Let us examine the personal opinion first," replied the judge.

Pollard nodded. "It has been the opinion of the men at the Lawson Laboratory that all of these men have discovered something that has driven them into amnesia. Amnesia, you understand, is the mind's withdrawal from a distasteful reality.

"Of all of them, however, Carroll is the only one who has shown a sign of recovery from a state of complete amnesia pertaining to his work. Carroll returned with an hallucination of a strange alien culture at work to suppress any research."

"I want to establish Doctor Pollard's reputation and ability as a physician, surgeon, and practising psychiatrist," said Barnett.

Frank Barre stood up. "Waived," he said. "Prosecution agrees that Doctor Pollard's training and position are impeccable."

"Thank you," replied Barnett. "Go on, Doctor Pollard."

"In usual cases of paranoia the subject develops a persecution complex. Usually it is directed against his fellow man. In Carroll's case this was fastened upon the mythical race on another star.

"Carroll believes the Lawson Radiation to be the wasted energy from a space drive capable of interstellar travel. This alien race is supposed to be suppressing the research for a reason not quite clear, though Carroll believes--"

"Tell us what you know, Doctor Pollard."

"As with usual cases Carroll went to great pains to produce certified evidence. While preparing the so-called facts, Carroll is in a state of self-hypnosis--hallucination--in which he was actually living with the aliens; and stealing their stuff. When he brings his evidence forward he attributes it to their culture rather than the product of his own brilliant mind."

"And what do you recommend?" asked Barnett.

"Since the Lawson Radiation was the thing that caused his downfall in the first place whatever he found was important. We may have been lax in our efforts to bring Carroll 'back'. Yet, we feel that any measure that will help us to know what it is--is permissible.

"Even attempts at murder?"

Pollard shuddered. "Of course not," he said. "I should have said any legal measure."

"Thank you," replied Barnett. "I'll now call James Forrest Carroll. I want the Court to hear his own story."

"Carroll," said Barnett, once the man was legally installed on the witness stand, "did you try to kill Rita Galloway?"

"No!"

"Did you try to kill a woman you knew as Rhinegallis?"

"No!"

"Then who did try to kill her?"

"Her brother, Kingallis!"

"Do you see this man in the courtroom now?"

"Yes," said Carroll pointing to a man at the witnesses's table. "That is Kingallis."

"We will show later that the witness identified has been known all of his life as Kingston Galloway, and is the brother of the woman." Then Barnett faced Carroll again. "Do you mind talking about this?"

* * * * *

Carroll shook his head as he said, "Not at all. I have been most deeply frustrated. Time after time I have produced evidence to show the truth of the matter. I have gained no one who will believe me."

"You say that Kingallis tried to kill his sister. Why?"

"Because she betrayed him by helping me."

"Your honor, you will recognize the importance of this statement. It--like so many others--is a half truth. It is true and yet the implication is not the same. The fact is, your honor, that Carroll actually has reason to believe that Kingallis came through the teleport to take revenge. This is part of the hallucination."

He turned again to Carroll. "You claim you were held against your will in a building in Virginia?"

"I was."

"Then tell me how it was that you were seen performing your job during the time you claim to have been prisoner--and disappeared at the time you went to Wisconsin with Rita Galloway?"

Carroll smiled. "By the same explanation as the twin Sallys. One, you remember, went into the black car so that the men could read the day's reports and fix those that were informative. The other went into the drugstore for a bite to eat in order to fill in the interim. There was a man made up to resemble me."

"You see, your honor, Carroll believes his hallucination implicitly."

"Obviously."

Barnett faced Carroll. "Prosecution claims that you, yourself, attacked the girl in a state of anger because she proved your beliefs wrong--and in hallucinatory hope that a complete autopsy would prove you correct."

"This is untrue."

"Your inventions--"

"They are not my inventions. They are thefted from the alien library."

"Carroll, you have a brilliant mind."

"I was mentally strong enough to defy their thought machines," replied Carroll.

"And you have an extensive education in physics and science?"

"I have."

"Now tell me, are any of these inventions beyond understanding?"

"Naturally not. They are based upon physical laws that are at present unknown on Terra."

"As--say--electricity was unknown in the days of Galileo?"

"About like that."

"Then, Carroll, it might be possible that you yourself made these discoveries?"

"I might have," admitted Carroll. "But--"

"Under a hallucination? To prove to your own mind that you were stealing something of scientific excellence?"

"There is the matter of the language."

"Irrelevant. It is a tongue no one here understands."

"Kingallis! _Vol thes nil kantil res vi pon tere_...."

* * * * *

Kingston Galloway blinked as Carroll tongued his syllables, then began to laugh.

"You see," said Barnett, "anyone can mouth meaningless words and call them a language. You can, if you are brilliant, even assign meanings to them. Esperanto, among others, is a manufactured language."

"Yet I claim it true."

"What about your own future?"

"I care nothing for myself, it is only the future of Sol that concerns me."

"Your honor," said Barnett, "There are two things I want to say before I close. One is that James Forrest Carroll is not sane. Therefore he should be committed to an institution. The other is that James Forrest Carroll, for all of his insanity, is still a brilliant physicist.

"He knows something about the Lawson Radiation that men have gone mad for previously, that men have sought for thirty years, that time and money has been spent for. Therefore, in this institution, James Forrest Carroll should be permitted to experiment at his own will.

"For if nothing else he will produce many other marvelous things in an effort to prove that the science of the aliens is far greater than ours."

The judge asked Carroll, "You have a reason for believing all this?"

"I know why. The alien culture wants to conquer the universe. Because we are very close to them in scientific achievement they have cause to fear us.

"The Lawson Radiation is the spilled energy from their interstellar ships and possession of this secret will permit Terra--or any other system--to fight them on their own terms, even to beat them back to their own system. Therefore they are suppressing all research by clever misdirection."

"I see. You seem to have an answer to every angle," mused the judge.

"The trouble is," said Carroll, "that people insist upon judging me in accordance with their own views--which means that they have an answer to my every objection."

"In other words," smiled the judge, "the world is wrong and you are right?"

"Precisely."

"You know what is said about such people?"

Carroll smiled. "They said the same thing about Galileo, Columbus, the Wright brothers, Bell, Edison and Marconi," he said.

"It is often hard to tell," said the judge. "However, there are some good ways."

Carroll faced the judge. "Sentence me," he said in a surly tone. "For only by silencing me can you stop me from seeking you out."

"Me?" asked the judge in surprise.

"Either you are Terran and must therefore do everything to help me unravel this mad pattern or you are really an alien who has succeeded in penetrating to a high place in our civilization--and are therefore interested in seeing that my knowledge of you is not given any recognition."

"But why--"

"It has been said that when the superman arrives, he will be well concealed and will occupy a high place in the world without anybody knowing about it. You may or may not be. Yet by your decision you will prove it to me!"

"I see no reason to defend my opinion against your attack," replied the judge. "However, in view of the circumstances, I hereby direct the jury to return a verdict of 'guilty of criminal assault while in an insane condition' and a sentence of committal to an institution until such a time as you are pronounced sane and rational. Court is dismissed!"