"(novel) (ebook) - Perry Rhodan 0032 - (24) Infinity Flight" - читать интересную книгу автора (Perry Rhodan)

Suddenly it dawned on Rhodan how minuscule indeed was the Arkonide Empire when measured against the extent of the Milky Way. And what was Terra compared to that empire? A mere speck of dust!
Could it be that the Immortal had taken him along on this trip to demonstrate how microscopically small Rhodan was in comparison to cosmic creation?
Rapidly the structure of the spiral nebula shrank in size. It fell back behind them at a million times the speed of light. At least that's what it looked like to Rhodan's wonder­filled eyes.
Rhodan peered ahead again. But there was no star to be seen there. The space ahead of the ship was so black as Rhodan had never before perceived. It was absolute darkness in which light seemed to be an unknown factor. Only over to one side, to the left, shone a tiny, washed-out spot. He had to keep his eyes fastened to this spot for almost 10 seconds just to be able to see it properly. Another galaxy, many millions of light­years distant!
Over to the right he could barely make out another such galaxy. It was a faint glimmer in the darkness-a tiny spot which represented the glow of many millions of suns, now hardly visible, like the weak light of a dying candle. Even the light of the stars loses the battle against space and time, thought Rhodan, drained of emotion, and closed his eyes.
When he woke up again, eight hours had gone by.
The universe still looked the same as before he had gone to sleep. Twelve to 15 galaxies were shining from all directions. They had not come any closer despite the fact that Rhodan was rushing toward them with a speed of billions of miles per second. And that had been going on for the past eight hours.
"Listen," he whispered with emotion. "Your joke is going too far. You should have spared me the sight of infinity."
"Why?" The voice of the invisible Immortal harboured a hint of surprise. "Why shouldn't you see what is lying ahead of you? We all are existing in infinity and are part of it. Why shouldn't we know what we are?"
"It's too much for me. My mind refuses to..."
"In that case your mind has grasped the truth," interrupted the voice. Then the centre of their topic shifted. "Now, do you understand why the Barkonides wanted to remove their planet from their own solar system? Can you see that the total isolation of their home, tucked away in this corner of the universe, had to drive them almost insane? Whenever they look up into the night skies they see only far away galaxies which have to represent-in their eyes-the symbol of friendship and gregarious company. They believe that there in the distance are inhabited worlds so close together that they are constantly in touch with each other. While they, the Barkonides, are all alone, utterly and infinitely alone."
A wave of recognition suddenly swept over Rhodan. "The Barkonides!" he stammered. "What if you leave off the B..."
"No speculations, please!" the Immortal warned with, Rhodan imagined, a hint of a knowing wink. "Coincidences are a fertile ground for speculations but they still remain coincidences. Only in rare cases can we state any true connections."
"Not this time?"
"Do you really expect me to answer? Why don't you ask the Barkonides in person-there will be ample opportunity for you."
Rhodan refrained from posing any more questions.

* * * *

They were still 15 minutes short of the time their trip through infinity would have lasted two full days. For the past hour Rhodan had tried very hard to discover a star imbedded in the total darkness that lay between the washed­out spots of the galaxies.
"In another 60 seconds Barkon will appear on this video screen, old friend. The star's light can be seen only some 800 light­years away."
Silently, Rhodan continued to stare at the screen. And then, exactly 60 seconds later a tiny star arose at the vanishing point. Rapidly the tiny glimmer grew brighter and larger.
"That's Barkon, the lonely sun. Of course it's easy to understand that the inhabitants of such an isolated system are unacquainted with the galactic code of behaviour. Though they have learned from traditions handed down through the ages that they are not the only form of intelligent life in the universe, they still believe they are the superior race. Their technology is outstanding but they have neglected the art of space travel as it seems senseless to make any efforts in that direction. Even if they'd fly with the speed of light they'd need 150,000 years to reach the nearest star. That would be too wearisome even for Immortals. And the Barkonides definitely are not immortal. For this reason they have concentrated their entire knowledge and effort on the one project: to change their planet into a gigantic spaceship. This is their only hope, they believe, to return together in the course of thousands of generations to their former lost galaxy."
"A brilliant plan," admitted Rhodan. "But how will I be able to help these magnificent technicians? And who will they think I am when they see me?"
"You will be able to assist them for I am inside you, Perry. And don't worry how, they will welcome you. There isn't another people in the entire universe so much longing for visitors from outer space as the Barkonides. They will welcome you with open arms. Maybe they'll get curious about the propulsion system of your spacecraft but we'll manage to divert their attention when that question arises. Even if they could overcome space and time with their spaceships, it would be impossible for them to transport their whole planet across the distance of thousands of light­years. No, there is but one possibility left-and they have found out about it."
Another five minutes went by.
The sun Barkon had become radiantly bright. It was now shining at a distance of 500 light­years. In nine minutes they would come to the end of their journey.
"How will we brake our speed in time?" said Rhodan apprehensively.
"The synchronous slowing­down passage of time will neutralize all side effects," reported the Immortal and laughed. For the first time in many hours It was laughing again. "You needn't do anything, old friend-I'll take care of everything; I'll do it for you. I'm happy to be a human being once again-what a rare pleasure."
This time good­natured sarcasm was noticeable in It's voice but Rhodan ignored it. Suddenly he moved his right arm without having issued such an order to his muscles. His right hand fiddled with some control knobs. A band on a dial in front of him began to whirl around like mad. Little lamps were blinking off and on. A shrill bell was ringing somewhere in the ship. The floor underneath Rhodan's feet was vibrating.
"Your eyes will register nothing but a diminishing of our flight speed," announced the Immortal gaily. "Keep your eyes on Barkon, that's all. This is our only point of reference now."
The range indicator showed another 150,000 light years. If they kept their current velocity it would mean 160 seconds fill Barkon.
Everything remained as before for another minute.
Then the braking procedure It had announced earlier began. Despite the fact that Barkon kept coming closer and closer, it took a good half hour before the ship dipped into the system at a speed of 600 miles per second.
"They won't notice us until we are there, of course," prophesied the Immortal. "They have neither telescopes nor radar scopes. They haven't seen a star in a million years."
Rhodan was thinking of something else. "According to Earth time-what would the date be now?"
The answer came without hesitation.
"Hm... I was sick then. I know for sure. I was not hospitalized but I was confined to my bed at home in Terrania. Kind of a flu. Hm, and now it's the same date again?"
"Not again... it's still that date!" emphasized the Immortal ironically. "Yes, you are ill and you are on Earth. Have you forgotten your horrible feverish dream?"
"Feverish dream?" Rhodan shuddered. Yes, he remembered it now. He had awakened, drenched in sweat, and had seen the worried faces of his friends Dr. Haggard and Reginald Bell. "But I can't recall what it was that I dreamed."
"I could tell you: you were dreaming that what we are experiencing now-of course very much speeded up and therefore confusing your mind. While you were dreaming you were already forgetting everything. What are dreams in your opinion?"
Rhodan perceived now far ahead the shape of the planet. Soon he could distinguish the outlines of the continents rising from the oceans. Cloud banks bid part of the planet's surface.
"What are dreams?" he asked eagerly.
"Trips of the unconscious mind, that's all. The brain's ability to remember and the spirit's detachment from the body. While we are sleeping our brain is no longer tied to matter and thus is free from the chains of time and space. Human beings know only one form of time travel: dreaming. Dreams are however just a tiny portion of the borderland between reality and vague memories."
"Do you mean to say by that that one actually experiences whatever one is dreaming? I can't believe that."
"Isn't this here proof enough for you?"
Rhodan did not say anything. He had to admit his failure. He could not quite comprehend what the Immortal had been trying to explain. Rhodan however was aware of the fact that dreams constituted a not yet entirely solved phenomenon which kept raising many questions! But the Immortal's words had opened up new perspectives which seemed so horrendous that Rhodan didn't dare ponder any further. In his dreams, that was incontestable, man acquired abilities he did not possess during his waking hours. He could conquer gravity, could rise into the skies at will, could read other men's thoughts and if necessary could even make himself invisible or teleport matter. Why could he perform all these acts when there was no reason to assume that he might have that potential hidden inside himself?
Had he ever possessed these gifts in the far, far distant past?
"We are about to land," the Immortal's voice interrupted his speculations. "The Barkonides are a nation firmly welded together in the sense of a true galactic civilization. They have one capital city and only one central government which, because of their gigantic project consists mainly of scientists. This will save us a lot of work."
"Do I... do we have to be afraid of any hostile acts?"