3001 The Final Odyssey

chapter 28 The Little Dawn
MISS PRINGLE RECORD

Here comes the Sun! Strange - how quickly it seems to rise, on this slowly turning world! Of course, of course - the disc's so small that the whole of it pops above the horizon in no time... Not that it makes much difference to the light - if you weren't looking in that direction, you'd never notice that there was another sun in the sky.

But I hope the Europs have noticed. Usually it takes them less than five minutes to start coming ashore after the Little Dawn. Wonder if they already know I'm here, and are scared...

No - could be the other way round. Perhaps they're inquisitive - even anxious to see what strange visitor has come to Tsienville... I rather hope so...

Here they come! Hope your spysats are watching - Falcon's cameras recording...

How slowly they move! I'm afraid it's going to be very boring trying to communicate with them... even if they want to talk to me...

Rather like the thing that overturned Tsien, but much smaller... They remind me of little trees, walking on half a dozen slender trunks. And with hundreds of branches, dividing into twigs, which divide again... and again. Just like many of our general-purpose robots... what a long time it took us to realize that imitation humanoids were ridiculously clumsy, and the proper way to go was with myriad of small manipulators! Whenever we invent something clever, we find that Mother Nature's already thought of it...

Aren't the little ones cute - like tiny bushes on the move. Wonder how they reproduce - budding? I hadn't realized how beautiful they are. Almost as colourful as coral reef fish - maybe for the same reasons... to attract mates, or fool predators by pretending to be something else...

Did I say they looked like bushes? Make that rose-bushes - they've actually got thorns! Must have a good reason for them...

I'm disappointed. They don't seem to have noticed me. They'll all heading into town, as if a visiting spacecraft was an everyday occurrence... only a few left... maybe this will work...

I suppose they can detect sound vibrations - most marine creatures can - though this atmosphere may be too thin to carry my voice very far...

FALCON - EXTERNAL SPEAKER...

HELLO, CAN YOU HEAR ME? MY NAME IS FRANK POOLE... AHEM... I COME IN PEACE FOR ALL MANKIND...

Makes me feel rather stupid, but can you suggest anything better? And it will be good for the record...

Nobody's taking the slightest notice. Big ones and little ones, they re all creeping towards their igloos Wonder what they actually do when they get there - perhaps I should follow. I'm sure it would be perfectly safe - I can move so much faster - I've just had an amusing flashback. All these creatures going in the same direction - they look like the commuters who used to surge back and forth twice a day between home and office, before electronics made it unnecessary. Let's try again, before they all disappear.

HELLO THERE THIS IS FRANK POOLE, A VISITOR FROM PLANET EARTH. CAN YOU HEAR ME?

I HEAR YOU, FRANK. THIS IS DAVE.