Honesty is the best policy. Gordon John

Gordon John

John GORDON

HONESTY IS THE BEST POLICY

Tagobar Larnimisculus Wharf Borgax Fenigwisnock. It was long name and an important title, and he was proud of them. This title meant approximately - “High Sheriff, Admiral of Fenigwisnock,” and Fenigwisnock was a rich and significant planet in the Del empire. The title and name looked impressive on the documents, and there were a lot of documents to sign.

Tagobar himself was an excellent example of his breed, embodying strength and pride. Like turtles on Earth, he had both an external and internal skeleton, although that was all that gave him any resemblance to turtles. He looked like a man, something between a medieval knight in armor and a stocky rugby player dressed for the field. The color of him was like a well-boiled crayfish, and at the joints of the exoskeleton it turned into a dark purple. The clothes consisted only of a short skirt, embroidered with fancy patterns and strewn with sparkling precious stones. The emblem of his rank was engraved in gold on the front and back of his carapace, so that he could be recognized when he entered and when he left.

In short, he was quite an imposing figure, despite his height of only five feet two inches. As commander of his own starship, the Verf, he was tasked with seeking out and exploring planets suitable for colonization by the Del people. He's been working hard on this already long years, strictly following the General Instructions, as a good commander should do.

And it was worth it. In his time, he found several good planets, and this was the most tasty morsel of all.

Looking at the magnifying screen, he rubbed his hands in satisfaction. His ship was spinning smoothly in orbit high above the newly discovered planet. And the screen was aimed at the area below. No Del ship had ever been to this part of the Galaxy, and it was nice to find a suitable planet so quickly.

Magnificent planet! - he said. - Delightful planet. Look how green it is! And the blue of these seas! - He turned to Lieutenant Pelkvesh. - How do you think? Isn't this wonderful?

Of course, wonderful, your magnificence! - Pelkvesh answered. - You will receive another reward for it.

Tagobar began to say something, but suddenly stopped. His hands rushed to the controls and grabbed the switches; the ship's powerful engines roared from overload as the ship hung motionless relative to the planet below. The landscape on the magnifying screen stopped. Tagobar adjusted the magnification and the image began to grow.

Here! - said the commander. - Pelkvesh, what is this?

The question was purely rhetorical, the image, obscured by the fluctuating currents in the two hundred-odd miles of atmosphere, barely flickered on the screen, but there was no doubt that this was some kind of city. Lieutenant Pelkves said so.

Damn it! - Tagobar grumbled. - Busy planet. Cities are built only by intelligent beings.

That's it,” agreed the lieutenant.

Both of them didn't know what to do. Only a few times throughout long history Dels they discovered intelligent creatures, but under the rule of the empire they gradually died out. None of these races, by the way, were particularly intelligent.

We’ll have to request General Instructions,” Tagobar finally said. He moved to another screen, turned it on and began typing in the code numbers.

Deep in the bowels of the ship, a General Instruction robot slowly awoke to life. His vast memory contained 10 thousand years of accumulated and organized facts, 10 thousand years of imperial experience, 10 thousand years of final decisions on every issue. It was more than an encyclopedia - it was a way of life.

Robot according to the most strict rules the logician tested his memory until he found the answer to Tagobara's request; then it transmitted the data to the screen.

Hmmm,” said Tagobar. - Yes. General Instruction 333953216a, MMCMH Chapter 9, paragraph 402, "Upon detection of intelligent or semi-intelligent life, obtain a random sample for examination. Avoid other contact until the sample has been examined in accordance with Psychological Directive 659-B, Section 888 077d, under the direction of the Chief Psychologist. Check the data with the General Instructions. If accidental contact has already occurred, contact OI 472-678-R-S, chapter MMMCCX, paragraph 553. Samples should be taken accordingly.."

He finished reading the General Instructions and then turned to the lieutenant.

Pelkvesh, prepare a support boat to take the sample. I'll notify psychologist Zendoplite to get ready.

Ed Magruder took a deep breath of spring air and closed his eyes. The air was beautiful, it was saturated with spicy aromas and rich smells, although alien, but for some reason they seemed familiar - more familiar than earthly ones.

Ed was tall and thin, with dark hair and sparkling brown eyes that seemed to be squinting with hidden laughter.

He opened his eyes. The city was not yet asleep, but darkness was coming quickly. Ed loved his evening walks. But wandering the fields after dusk was dangerous on New Hawaii, even now. There were small creatures of the night, flitting softly through the air and biting without warning. There were also larger predators. Ed headed back to the town of New Hilo, built on the site where man first set foot on the new planet.

Magruder was a biologist. He had scoured half a dozen worlds over the past ten years, collecting specimens, carefully dissecting them, and recording the results in notebooks. Slowly, link by link, he compiled a diagram - a diagram of life itself. He had many predecessors, right up to Karl Lineus, but none of them understood what they were missing. They had only one type of life at their disposal - earthly life. And all earthly life is ultimately homogeneous. Of all the planets he had seen, he liked New Hawaii especially strongly. It was the only planet, besides Earth, where a person can walk without any protective clothing - at least the only one that has been discovered so far.

Ed heard a faint whistle overhead and looked up. It's still too early for night creatures.

And then he saw that this was not a creature of the night at all, it was some kind of ball, like a metal one and...

A greenish glow flashed on the surface of the ball, and for Ed Magruder everything disappeared.

Tagobar Werf watched dispassionately as Lieutenant Pelkvesh carried the insensitive specimen into the biological testing facility. The sample was strange looking- parody of Living being with soft skin, like a slug, pale, pinkish-dark in color. With disgusting mold-like growths on the head and other places.

Biologists accepted the sample and began working on it. They took pieces of his skin, some of his blood, and took electrical readings from his muscles and nerves.

Zendoplite, the chief psychologist, stood next to the commander, overseeing the procedure.

For biologists it was Standard procedure; they worked in the same way as with any other sample that came to them. But Zendoplit had a job to do that he had never had to do before. He had to work with the brain of a sentient being.

But he was not worried: everything was written down in the manual, every detail of the Standard Procedure. There was nothing to worry about.

As with all other samples, Zendoplite had to decipher the basic reaction pattern. Each given organism is capable of reacting only in a certain, very large, but limited number of ways, and these ways can be reduced to the Basic Scheme. To destroy any breed of creatures, you only need to find their Basic Scheme and then give them a task that they cannot solve according to this scheme. It was all very simple and everything is written down in the Guide.

Tagobar turned to Zendoplite.

Do you really think he can learn our language?

The beginnings of it, your magnificence,” answered the psychologist. - Our language is, after all, very complex. Of course, we will try to teach him the whole system of the language, but I doubt that he will be able to learn much of it. Our language is based on logic, just as thought itself is based on logic. Some of the lower animals are capable of rudimentary logic, but most are unable to understand it.

Okay, we'll do the best we can. I'll interrogate him myself.

Zendoplite was surprised.

But, your magnificence, all questions are written down in detail in the Guide!

Tagobar Werf frowned.

As you wish, your magnificence,” the Psychologist agreed.

When the biologists finished working with Ed Magruder, he was placed in the Language Bunker. Light spotlights were placed over his eyes, focused on his retinas, acoustic devices were inserted into his ears, various electrodes were attached throughout his body, and a thin wire net was placed on his skull. Then a special serum invented by biologists was injected into his blood. All this was done with impeccable precision. Then the bunker was closed and the switch was turned on.

I read this story as a child, in a collection, which I later gave to someone I don’t remember to read. I couldn’t find it for many years, because I didn’t remember either the author or the key words, and in general it seemed like this text didn’t exist on the Internet. Now it has appeared, but information about it is still scarce - even only the last name is known about the author. But the story is good, I recommend it.

John Gordon "Honesty is the best policy"

Tagobar Larnimisculus Wharf Borgax Fenigwisnock. It was a long name and an important title, and he was proud of it. This title meant roughly “High Sheriff, Admiral of Fenigwisnock,” and Fenigwisnock was a rich and significant planet in the Dal Empire. The title and name looked impressive on the documents, and there were a lot of documents to sign. Tagobar himself was an excellent example of his breed, embodying strength and pride. Like turtles on Earth, it had both an external and internal skeleton, although that was all that gave it any resemblance to turtles. He looked like a man, something between a medieval knight in armor and a stocky rugby player dressed for the field. Its color was like that of a well-cooked crayfish, and at the joints of the exoskeleton it turned into a dark purple. The clothing consisted only of a short skirt, embroidered with intricate patterns and studded with sparkling precious stones. The emblem of his rank was engraved in gold on the front and back of his carapace, so that he could be recognized when he entered and when he left. In short, he was quite an imposing figure, despite his height of only five feet two inches. As commander of his own starship, the Verf, he was tasked with seeking out and exploring planets suitable for colonization by the Dahl people. He had been diligently doing this for many years, following the General Instructions exactly, as a good commander should do. Looking at the magnifying screen, he rubbed his hands in satisfaction. His ship was spinning smoothly in orbit high above the newly discovered planet. And the screen was aimed at the area below. No Del ship had ever been to this part of the Galaxy, and it was nice to find a suitable planet so quickly.
- Magnificent planet! - he said. - Delightful planet.
Look how green it is! And the blue of these seas! – he turned to Lieutenant Pelkvesh.
- How do you think?
Isn't this wonderful?
- Of course, wonderful, your magnificence! - Pelkvesh answered. - You will receive another reward for it. Tagobar began to say something, but suddenly stopped. His hands rushed to the controls and grabbed the switches; the ship's powerful engines roared from overload as the ship hung motionless relative to the planet below. The landscape on the magnifying screen stopped. Tagobar adjusted the magnification and the image began to grow.
- Here! - said the commander. - Pelkvesh, what is this? The question was purely rhetorical, the image, obscured by the fluctuating currents in the two hundred-odd miles of atmosphere, barely flickered on the screen, but there was no doubt that this was some kind of city. Lieutenant Pelkves said so.
- Damn him! – Tagobar grumbled. – Busy planet. Cities are built only by intelligent beings.
“That’s right,” agreed the lieutenant. Both of them did not know what to do. Only a few times in the entire long history of the Dels were they discovered intelligent creatures, but under the rule of the empire they gradually died out. None of these races, by the way, were particularly intelligent.
“We’ll have to request the General Instructions,” Tagobar finally said. He moved to another screen, turned it on and began typing in the numbers of the code. Deep in the bowels of the ship, the General Instruction robot slowly awoke to life. In his vast memory lay 10 thousand years of accumulated and organized facts, 10 thousand years of Empire Experience, 10 thousand years of final decisions on every issue. It was more than an encyclopedia - it was an image of life.
“Hmmmm,” said Tagobar. - Yes. General Instruction 33395321 ba, chapter MMSMH 9 paragraph 402, “After discovering intelligent or semi-intelligent life,” take a randomly selected sample for research. Avoid other contact until the specimen has been evaluated in accordance with Psychological Directive 659-B, Section 888077e, under the direction of the Chief Psychologist. Check the data with the General Instructions. If accidental contact has already occurred, contact OH 472-678-R-S, chapter MMMSSKh, paragraph 553. Samples should be taken accordingly..."
He finished reading the General Instructions and then turned to the lieutenant.
– Pelkvash, prepare an auxiliary boat to take a sample. I'll notify psychologist Zendoplite to get ready.

Gordon John Honesty is the best policy

John Gordon

John GORDON

HONESTY IS THE BEST POLICY

Tagobar Larnimisculus Wharf Borgax Fenigwisnock. It was a long name and an important title, and he was proud of it. This title meant approximately - “High Sheriff, Admiral of Fenigwisnock,” and Fenigwisnock was a rich and significant planet in the Del empire. The title and name looked impressive on the documents, and there were a lot of documents to sign.

Tagobar himself was an excellent example of his breed, embodying strength and pride. Like turtles on Earth, he had both an external and internal skeleton, although that was all that gave him any resemblance to turtles. He looked like a man, something between a medieval knight in armor and a stocky rugby player dressed for the field. The color of him was like a well-boiled crayfish, and at the joints of the exoskeleton it turned into a dark purple. The clothing consisted only of a short skirt, embroidered with intricate patterns and studded with sparkling precious stones. The emblem of his rank was engraved in gold on the front and back of his carapace, so that he could be recognized when he entered and when he left.

In short, he was quite an imposing figure, despite his height of only five feet two inches. As commander of his own starship, the Verf, he was tasked with seeking out and exploring planets suitable for colonization by the Del people. He had been diligently doing this for many years, following the General Instructions exactly, as a good commander should do.

And it was worth it. In his time, he found several good planets, and this was the most tasty morsel of all.

Magnificent planet! - he said. - Delightful planet. Look how green it is! And the blue of these seas! - He turned to Lieutenant Pelkvesh. - How do you think? Isn't this wonderful?

Of course, wonderful, your magnificence! - Pelkvesh answered. - You will receive another reward for it.

Here! - said the commander. - Pelkvesh, what is this?

Damn it! - Tagobar grumbled. - Busy planet. Cities are built only by intelligent beings.

That's it,” agreed the lieutenant.

Both of them didn't know what to do. Only a few times in the long history of the Dels were they discovered intelligent creatures, but under the rule of the empire they gradually became extinct. None of these races, by the way, were particularly intelligent.

We’ll have to request General Instructions,” Tagobar finally said. He moved to another screen, turned it on and began typing in the code numbers.

The robot, according to the strictest rules of logic, tested its memory until it found the answer to Tagobara's request; then it transmitted the data to the screen.

He finished reading the General Instructions and then turned to the lieutenant.

Pelkvesh, prepare a support boat to take the sample. I'll notify psychologist Zendoplite to get ready.

Ed was tall and thin, with dark hair and sparkling brown eyes that seemed to be squinting with hidden laughter.

Ed heard a faint whistle overhead and looked up. It's still too early for night creatures.

And then he saw that this was not a creature of the night at all, it was some kind of ball, like a metal one and...

A greenish glow flashed on the surface of the ball, and for Ed Magruder everything disappeared.

Tagobar Werf watched dispassionately as Lieutenant Pelkvesh carried the insensitive specimen into the biological testing facility. The specimen was strange-looking - a parody of a living creature with soft skin, like a slug, pale, pinkish-swarthy in color. With disgusting mold-like growths on the head and other places.

Biologists accepted the sample and began working on it. They took pieces of his skin, some of his blood, and took electrical readings from his muscles and nerves.

Zendoplite, the chief psychologist, stood next to the commander, overseeing the procedure.

For biologists this was Standard Procedure; they worked in the same way as with any other sample that came to them. But Zendoplit had a job to do that he had never had to do before. He had to work with the brain of a sentient being.

But he was not worried: everything was written down in the manual, every detail of the Standard Procedure. There was nothing to worry about.

Tagobar turned to Zendoplite.

Do you really think he can learn our language?

Okay, we'll do the best we can. I'll interrogate him myself.

Zendoplite was surprised.

But, your magnificence, all questions are written down in detail in the Guide!

Tagobar Werf frowned.

As you wish, your magnificence,” the Psychologist agreed.

Magruder vaguely felt that he was emerging from somewhere out of the darkness. He saw strange, lobster-like creatures moving around him, and some sounds were whispering and gurgling in his ears.

Gradually he began to understand. He was taught to associate sounds with objects and actions.

Ed Magruder sat in a small room, four by six feet, naked as a worm, and looked through the transparent wall at the six strangers he had seen so often in the past. Lately.

He had no idea how long he had been taught the language; he was in a fog.

“Well,” he thought, “I collected a lot of good samples, and now I’ve gotten into the samples myself.” He...

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Gordon John

Honesty is the best policy