* * * * *
"Now," said the Oracle, after excellent coffee had been produced, "it
is necessary for me to go back into history a few hundred thousand of
your years. At that time, the people who made me entered this galaxy
on one of their periodic visits of routine exploration, and contacted
your ancestors. The race that constructed me populates now, as it did
then, the Greater Magellanic Cloud.
"Frankly, the Magellanic race was appalled at what they found. In the
time since their preceding visit, your race had risen from the slime
of your mother planet and was on its way toward stars. The speed of
your development was unprecedented in millions of years of history. By
their standards, your race was incredibly energetic, incredibly fecund,
incredibly intelligent, unbelievably warlike, and almost completely
depraved.
"Extrapolation revealed that within another fifty thousand of your
years, you would complete the population of this galaxy and would be
totally unstoppable.
"Something had to be done, fast. There were two obvious solutions
but both were unacceptable to my Makers. The first was to assume
direct control over your race and to maintain that rule indefinitely,
until such time as you changed your natures sufficiently to become
civilizable. The expenditure of energy would be enormous and the
results probably catastrophic to your race. No truly civilized people
could long contemplate such a solution.
"The second obvious answer was to attempt to extirpate you from this
universe as if you were a disease--as, in a sense, you are. Because
your depravity was not total or necessarily permanent, this solution
was also abhorrent to my Makers and was rejected.
"What was needed was a weapon that would keep operating without direct
control by my People, which would not result in any greater destruction
or harm to humans than was absolutely necessary; and one which would
cease entirely to operate against you if you changed sufficiently to
become civilizable--to become good neighbors to my Makers.
"The final solution of the Magellanic race was to construct several
thousand spaceships, each containing an elaborate computer, constructed
so as to give accurate answers throughout your galaxy. I am one of
those ships. We have performed our function in a satisfactory manner
and will continue to do so as long as we are needed."
"And that makes you a weapon?" asked Bates incredulously. "I don't get
it."
* * * * *
Farnum felt a shiver go through him. "I see it. The concept is
completely diabolical."
"It's not diabolical at all," answered the Oracle. "When you become
capable of civilization, we can do you no further harm at all. We will
cease to be a weapon at that time."
"You mean you'll stop telling the truth at that time?" asked Bates.
"We will continue to function in accordance with our design," answered
the voice, "but it will no longer do you harm. Incidentally, your
phrase 'telling the truth' is almost meaningless. We answer all
questions in the manner most completely understandable to you, within
the framework of your language and your understanding, and of the
understanding and knowledge of our Makers. In the objective sense, what
we answer is not necessarily the Truth; it is merely the truest form of
the answer that we can state in a manner that you can understand."
"And you'll answer any question at all?" asked Bates in some excitement.
"With one or two exceptions. We will not, for example, tell you how we
may be destroyed."
Bates stood up and began pacing the floor. "Then whoever possesses you
can be the most powerful man in the Universe!"
"No. Only in this galaxy."
"That's good enough for me!"
"Jack," said Farnum urgently, "let's get out of here. I want to talk to
you."
"In a minute, in a minute," said Bates impatiently. "I've got one more
question." He turned to face the wall from which the disembodied voice
appeared to emanate. "Is it possible to arrange it so that you would
answer only one man's questions--mine, for example?"
"I can tell you how to arrange it so that I will respond to only your
questions--for so long as you are alive."
"Come on," pleaded Farnum. "I've got to talk to you right now."
"Okay," said Bates, smiling. "Let's go."
* * * * *
When they were back in their ship, Farnum turned desperately to Bates.
"Can't you see what a deadly danger that machine is to us all? We've
got to warn Earth as fast as we can and get them to quarantine this
planet--and any other planets we find that have Oracles."
"Oh, no, you don't," said Bates. "You aren't getting the chance to have
the Oracle all to yourself. With that machine, we can rule the whole
galaxy. We'll be the most powerful people who ever lived! It's sure
lucky for us that you won the toss of the coin and we stopped here."
"But don't you see that the Oracle will destroy Earth?"
"Bushwah. You heard it say it can only destroy people who aren't
civilized. It said that it's a spaceship, so I'll bet we can get it to
come back to Earth with us, and tell us how we can be the only ones who
can use it."
"We've got to leave here right away--without asking it any more
questions."