‘I’m speaking plainly. What did the word asteroid mean to the silicony?’
‘The silicony learned about space out of an astronomy text that was read to it. I suppose the book explained what an asteroid was.’
‘Exactly,’ crowed Dr Urth, putting a finger to the side of his snub nose. ‘And how would the definition go? An asteroid is a small body, smaller than the planets, moving about the sun in an orbit which, generally speaking, lies between those of Mars and Jupiter. Wouldn’t you agree?’
‘I suppose so.’
‘And what is the Robert Q.?’
‘You mean the ship?’
‘That’s what you call it,’ said Dr Urth. ‘The ship. But the astronomy book was an ancient one. ]t made no mention of ships in space. One of the crewmen said as much. He said it dated from before space flight. Then what is the Robert Q.? Isn’t it a small body, smaller than the planets? And while the silicony was aboard, wasn’t it moving about the sun in an orbit which, generally speaking, lay between those of Mars and Jupiter?’
‘You mean the silicony considered the ship as just another asteroid, and when he said ‘on the asteroid,’ he meant ‘on the ship’?’
‘Exactly. I told you I would make you solve the problem for yourself.’
No expression of joy or relief lightened the gloom on the Inspector’s face. ‘That is no solution, Doctor.’
But Dr Urth blinked slowly at him and the bland look on his round face became, if anything, blander and more childlike in its uncomplicated pleasure. ‘Surely it is.’
‘Not at all. Dr Urth, we didn’t reason it out as you did. We dismissed the silicony’s remark completely. But still, don’t you suppose we searched the Robert Q.? We took it apart piece by piece, plate by plate. We just about unwelded the thing.’
‘And you found nothing?’
‘Nothing.’
‘Perhaps you did not look in the right place.’
‘We looked in every place.’ He stood up, as though to go. ‘You understand, Dr Urth? When we got through with the ship there was no possibility of those coordinates existing anywhere on it.’
‘Sit down, Inspector,’ said Dr Urth calmly. ‘You are still not considering the silicony’s statement properly. Now the silicony learned English by collecting a word here and a word there. It couldn’t speak idiomatic English. Some of its statements, as quoted, show that. For instance, it said, ‘the planet which is most far’ instead of ‘the farthest planet.’ You see?’
‘Well?’
‘Someone who cannot speak a language idiomatically either uses the idioms of his own language translated word by word or else he simply uses foreign words according to their literal meaning. The silicony had no spoken language of its own so it could only make use of the second alternative. Let’s be literal, then. He said, ‘on the asteroid,’ Inspector. On it. He didn’t mean on a piece of paper, he meant on the ship, literally.’
‘Dr Urth,’’ said Davenport sadly, ‘when the Bureau searches, it searches. There were no mysterious inscriptions on the ship either.’
Dr Urth looked disappointed. ‘Dear me, Inspector. I keep hoping you will see the answer. Really, you have had so many hints.’
Davenport drew in a slow, firm breath. It went hard, but his voice was calm and even once more. ‘Will you tell me what you have in mind, Doctor?’
Dr Urth patted his comfortable abdomen with one hand and replaced his glasses. ‘Don’t you see, Inspector, that there is one place on board a spaceship where secret numbers are perfectly safe? Where, although in plain view, they would be perfectly safe from detection? Where though they were being stared at by a hundred eyes, they would be secure? Except from a seeker who is an astute thinker, of course.’
‘Where? Name the place!’
‘Why, in those places where there happen to be numbers already. Perfectly normal numbers. Legal numbers. Numbers that are supposed to be there.’
‘What are you talking about?’
‘The ship’s serial number, etched directly on the hull. On the hull, be it noted. The engine number, the field generator number. A few others. Each etched on integral portions of the ship. On the ship, as the silicony said. On the ship.’
Davenport’s heavy eyebrows rose with sudden comprehension. ‘You may be right – and if you are, I’m hoping we find you a silicony twice the size of the Robert Q. ‘s. One that not only talks, but whistles, ‘Up, Asteroids, Forever!’’ He hastily reached for the dossier, thumbed rapidly through it and extracted an official T.B.I. form. ‘Of course, we noted down all the identification numbers we found.’ He spread the form out. ‘If three of these resemble coordinates . . . ’
‘We should expect some small effort at disguise,’ Dr Urth observed. ‘There will probably be certain letters and figures added to make the series appear more legitimate.’
He reached for a scratch pad and shoved another toward the Inspector. For minutes the two men were silent, jotting down serial numbers, experimenting with crossing out obviously unrelated figures.
At last Davenport let out a sigh that mingled satisfaction and frustration. ‘I’m stuck,’ he admitted. ‘I think you’re right; the numbers on the engine and the calculator are clearly disguised coordinates and dates. They don’t run anywhere near the normal series, and it’s easy to strike out the fake figures. That gives us two, but I’ll take my oath the rest of these are absolutely legitimate serial numbers. What are your findings, Doctor?’
Dr Urth nodded. ‘I ctgree. We now have two coordinates and we know where the third was inscribed.’
‘We know, do we? And how – ’ The Inspector broke off and uttered a sharp exclamation. ‘Of course! The number on the very ship itself, which isn’t entered here – because it was on the precise spot on the hull where the meteor crashed through – I’m afraid there goes your silicony, Doctor.’ Then his craggy face brightened. ‘But I’m an idiot. The number’s gone, but we can get it in a flash from Interplanetary Registry.’
‘I fear,’ said Dr Urth, ‘that I must dispute at least the second part of your statement. Registry will have only the ship’s original legitimate number, not the disguised coordinate to which the captain must have altered it.’
‘The exact spot on the hull,’ Davenport muttered. ‘And because of that chance shot the asteroid may be lost forever. What use to anybody are two coordinates without the third?’
‘Well,’ said Dr Urth precisely, ‘conceivably of very great use to a two-dimensional being. But creatures of our dimensions,’ he patted his paunch, ‘do require the third – which I fortunately happen to have right here.’
‘In the T.B.I. dossier? But we just checked the list of numbers—’
‘’Your list, Inspector. The file also includes young Vemadsky’s original report. And of course the serial number listed there for the Roben Q. is the carefully faked one under which she was then sailing-no point in rousing the curiosity of a repair mechanic by letting him note a discrepancy.’
Davenport reached for a scratch pad and the Vemadsky list. A moment’s calculation and he grinned.
Dr Urth lifted himself out of the chair with a pleased puff and trotted to the door. ‘It is always pleasant to see you, Inspector Davenport. Do come again. And remember the government can have the uranium, but I want the important thing: one giant silicony, alive and in good condition.’
