Verkan flew his aircar through the corridors of Old City, the last section of Dhergabar City, that still housed ground-hugging buildings, some dozen square blocks of densely packed ground level residences and commercial facilities. There were even a few buildings that could trace their history back to First Level PP (Pre-Paratime), but most only went back four millenniums to the Religious Wars, when most of Dhergabar had been leveled. Years later it had taken its present shape of tall anti-gravity towers and spires. Old City was where the infirm, those who found it difficult to live in townhouses only reachable by aircar; the indigent-even the Bureau of Psych-Hygiene hadn't been able to root out all the bums from First Level society-the out of work Proles and a small criminal element that not even the most determined Psych-Hygiene techniques could eradicate, nor the Metropolitan Police sweeps take captive.
Sticking straight up and out of the middle of Old Dhergabar City was the Paratime Commission Building, a two hundred-story edifice, protected by a next to impenetrable collapsed-nickel shield. Verkan parked his green aircar on Chief's reserved landing port and took the lift down to the hundred and eightieth floor. From there he walked to the office of the Paratime Commissioner for Security, where he was quickly ushered into Dalgroth Sorn's office.
"Chief Verkan, nice to see you," Dalgroth said, "please, take a seat."
Dalgroth Sorn was a tall, thin man with the air of a scholar, which was belied by both his piercing black eyes and raspy voice. There were still a few Paratime Police veterans who could recall, when during his term as an Inspector, that voice could peel collapsed-nickel. Dalgroth was more formal than usual and Verkan wondered if it was because he already knew why Verkan was visiting.
Verkan paused long enough to remove his pipe, load the barrel and light it. "This is not easy, Commissioner-"
"Verkan, you get right to the point. It's one of the things I like about you. But this time, I know what you're here to ask. The answer is yes."
Verkan blew out a lungful of smoke. "Thank you, Commissioner-"
Commissioner Dalgroth held up his hand to stop him again. "I hate to keep interrupting you, Verkan, but I've got some things I need to tell you.
Verkan nodded this time.
"I'm going to keep my job as Commissioner, but not just because you need my help. But, because, there are some serious problems facing First Level society, and I think I can do a better job right here at the Paratime Commission than I would be able to do as head of the First Level Social Stability Project. The job I was going to take after I resigned as Commissioner of Paratime Security."
"I'm very relieved by your decision, Commissioner. I believe I heard something about this Stability study on the evening news."
"What you heard, Verkan, from some newsie was just window dressing, as our friends on Europo-American call it. The real subject and purpose of this Project is not for public consumption."
Verkan braced himself. "I know I've been spending too much time on Kalvan's Time-Line and outtime in general, but-"
"Don't apologize, Vail. I'm one of the few people who completely understand how demanding the Paratime Police Chief's job truly is. I doubt you know this, but once-thirty years before Tortha's reign-I was offered the position of Paratime Chief. Oh, yes. I turned it down flat; I saw what it did to the man they wanted me to replace. Remember, back then I was Chief Inspector. I've seen four Chief's in my lifetime and Tortha was the only one who resigned without a physical or mental breakdown."
Verkan realized that he had never really known Dalgroth; he'd just been another useful ally who knew how to tell a good story. Verkan was beginning to realize that even with five times the normal human lifespan, there was still not enough time to do everything that needed to be done-much less what one wanted to do.
"I think your sojourns to Aryan-Transpacific are an excellent way to get away from the pressures and demands of a job that is simply too much responsibility for one man. Unfortunately, it has come to my attention, and that of several other highly placed persons that something is fundamentally wrong with our First Level culture. This is the reason behind the Social Stability Project."
"By fundamentally wrong, just what do you mean?"
"Vail, this time-line stinks! Maybe it's the accumulated sins and bad debt of ten thousand years of living off the labor of other human beings, but-whatever it is-it's beginning to manifest itself here on Home Time-Line."
"I haven't noticed anything unusual. Well, maybe crime is up a little."
"That's just one of the many symptoms. Did you know that First Level population has been dropping for the past fourteen centuries?"
"No. It certainly isn't obvious, Commissioner. There appear to be just as many Citizens as ever."
"True, but only because of the large increase in Prole citizenship-even as hard as the tests have become. The Prole problem is another part of this issue."
"I have noticed there is more actual Prole prejudice in Dhergabar than I recall growing up."
"You're right, the prejudice is growing worse. As Scholar Elltar has proposed, the Prole in our society has assumed a place quite similar to that of the Negro in the Europo-American, Hispano-Columbian Subsector, in the political entity still known as the United States, during the period they call the Reconstruction-after the War Between The States."
"The Civil War, I remember that. I did one of my first University Out-time Studies there while the War was still going on. I can see the parallels. The Civil War, in a lesser part, was about freeing the slaves. Separate, but not equal. The threat of slave rebellion."
"Exactly. As you've noticed in your Europo-American Quarantine proposal, this situation has been exacerbated with the passage of time. A number of observers believe there will be large-scale race riots on Hispano-Columbian Subsector in the next few years. There are a number of parallels to what's happening here on First Level."
"The Proles aren't slaves, but I do see similarities. So you believe that this is a threat to First Level Security?"
"Not now, but it could be. Are you familiar with a man who calls himself The Leader?"
"No. Should I be?" Verkan paused to re-light his pipe.'
"Not really. However, the man-and we don't know who he is-that calls himself The Leader is becoming more and more influential amongst the youth and the politically disenfranchised Citizens. Those who most feel threatened by the former Prole Citizens and by society as a whole. He's even encouraging his followers to wear a uniform of sorts, blue shirts and pants."
"That sounds similar to the fascist black shirts in Italy, and brown shirts of the old Nazi Storm Troopers on Europo-American." Verkan shook his head in disgust.
"You're not the only one who has come to that conclusion. There are some frightening parallels."
"Commissioner, as long as I'm Chief, I will not tolerate the harassment and murder of Proles on First Level Time-Line."
"I don't think it will come to genocide here, Verkan. We have a completely different situation here on First Level. No one here wants to eliminate the Proles, just keep them from becoming Citizens."
"Well, the whole idea of allowing outtimers to become Citizens is fairly new. Less than three hundred years old."
"Yes," Dalgroth said, "that's when it was first brought to the Executive Council's attention that the population decrease was going to continue no matter what laws were passed. To counter the steady population decline, a program was set up to administer citizenship to the best and brightest of the outtimers. It's been one of the last millennium's few successes. But the Proles are not the real problem, just a symptom. The problem is with the Home Time-Line Citizens and their growing malaise."
"How bad do you think this problem really is?" Verkan asked.
Dalgroth's brows furrowed heavily. "Bad. Bad enough that I believe it is the biggest problem facing the survival of the Home Time-Line."
"More dangerous than the possibility of the Paratime Secret being uncovered?"
"Yes, because it threatens the very core of our society. The fact is, Verkan, our society is crumbling before our eyes. There's enough social and commercial momentum that it might last another millennium, certainly a few more centuries-but it is dissolving. That is why, for right now, I have decided it is more important for me to continue on as Paratime Commissioner to help stabilize your stewardship as Paratime Police Chief, than it is to delve into First Level social problems. Because, if you fail as Chief, the results will be so catastrophic it will no longer matter what the problem was or is. The Paratime Police is First Level's most stable institution and if the Force collapses, because it's Chief has been forcibly removed. Well-the fact is-this whole time-line will go up like a thermonuclear blast!"
For the first time that he could remember, Verkan Vail was so nonplussed he was actually speechless.