In the morning, Lee Long returned to his home colony. He immediately went to the hospital and had procedures. At the academy, he took time for the usual gathering of experience in the arena. But today he decided to devote time to theoretical discipline as well.
The boy found the necessary office and was pleased to see a couple of familiar faces in it. Hannah had been taking a special course in Politology since the first days of class. Politology is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thoughts, political behavior, and associated constitutions and laws.
Lee nodded to the girl and took a seat in the back row. The class was taught by an elderly professional. Lee knew that this man was the head of the Colony's diplomatic department. The boy was looking for new knowledge. The structure of the Alliance had its peculiarities. Lee quickly realized that the modest text in an ordinary textbook was not enough. Diplomacy did not interest him. He understood that his diplomacy would be the diplomacy of the Force for a long time. He was already getting used to the idea that he would have to conduct business in secret for a long time.
The specialist asked the new student's opinion several times. Lee spoke from the position of a cautious newcomer. He had no understanding of colony management. He didn't have much of an opinion. The specialist soon realized that the new student did not deserve close attention. There were seventeen students in the room. Lee saw the future rulers of Europe 9. Most showed interest and were not shy about demonstrating their knowledge and opinions. The boy liked the atmosphere of the class. They talked for a couple of hours with one break.
After the class was over, Hannah immediately approached him,
"What are your impressions?"
"Positive impressions. I'm glad the future of our home is in good hands. You were good, I liked your ideas."
Lee honestly admitted that the girl was good at the business of management.
But he was pursuing his own goals. He wanted to get into this club.
Lee Long was inexperienced, but his intelligence compelled him to make deep thoughts and assumptions. Mental skill is a powerful tool. To use the Suggestion for robbery is primitive and crude. The boy was well aware that for five minutes he could suppress the will of any man. He could order a man to tell the truth and reveal secrets.
Are colonists publicly playing an interest in Independence? That's ridiculous. And it can be serious. From any position, Lee Long is bound to take an interest in the subject.
The first step is the exploration and finding a planet with rich resources? Great! Europe 9 can run its party. The colony gets good funds. And perhaps the colony is already sending scouts on a search. It doesn't matter what purpose the colonists are acting for. The colony's government is pursuing its interests. The independence fighters are willing to fight for their ideals. Lee Long wants to be in the know, and he wants to get information in time. To do so, he must join the club of respectable colonists. He has a reliable and dignified past. The son of those who gave their lives for the colony. He represents a promising specialist in the present. He is a future healer who shows the utmost ambition to perfect the skill. He is ready to take part in the challenging game.
Unfortunately, he could not begin his exploration of space. Now he had enough money to carry out many plans. He could have bought a spaceship and a supply of energy for a long flight. But he didn't have a man! The boy himself could not spend a year on an exploration mission. So he studied the matter carefully. No technology and no technomagic could help him! There were no robots, droids, or cyborgs that could act as a scout and conduct an independent conscious exploration of space.
Sentient races have paid ample attention to the question of machine rebellion. This question took place in ancient times. At present, the programming of artificial assistants has achieved excellent results. The sentient ones had perfect control over their assistants. Maybe major corporations had the technology to create top-notch artificial intelligence. Such information was not in the public domain.
Lee Long knew two ways to solve this problem. One way was nasty and crude. Slavery! He could buy a slave and send him on an exploratory mission. The information about slavery made an unpleasant impression. Slavery existed in the Galaxy. The oppression of sentient beings came in a variety of forms. This way was the easiest and guaranteed the success of his endeavors. The boy was ready to deal with some pirate. The moral side suited him. A pirate must pay for his crimes. Controlling a slave is simple. There are centuries of proven technology and methods of constraint.
Creating a clone was the second course of action. Lee Long long ago learned that this line of sentient activity existed in the galaxy. Advances in biotechnology found methods to artificially produce clones of sentient organisms. It was an expensive operation. Cloning was a legal activity. Most sentient races used cloning to create a defense force and maintain order. Dangerous activities could always be put on someone else's shoulders. Lee Long read the details and was pleasantly surprised at the prospects and drawbacks of this path. The prospects were excellent. He could buy reliable and loyal assistants and associates. The disadvantages were enormous! It cost a lot of money to create a clone. Creating a clone was a legal operation. Any sentient could buy a small team of clones. It did not arouse suspicion. But Lee Long was suspicious by the very fact of his existence. He was human! He had limited rights. His race had no right to use clones. To find a secret cloning laboratory? It was a daunting task and made little sense. Nothing is secret in this world. Any secret organizations have the backing of the legal forces.
Lee Long had the skill of the Race Dance. He could try to bypass the law. The boy concluded that he needed to find a good partner for the Ferin race. He already had such a partner! He immediately thought of his girlfriend. At that moment he could not immediately decide to test the skill. Turning into a girl? Ugh! He walked around the room making facial expressions. The experience seemed nasty and disgusting to him. Eventually Lee Long calmed down.
He pulled out a hologram of Black Star and looked at it. Memories came to mind. As children, they had cut hands and sealed their friendship and alliance with a bloody handshake. It was a serious ritual for her. The Ferin had a special relationship with such traditions.
"We be of one blood, thou and I," the boy whispered.
He looked at his friend's image and activated the Race Dance skill.
Amazing! He almost didn't feel uncomfortable this time. A thought flashed through his mind that the blood exchange was an interesting thing. This fact serves to facilitate the use of the skill of mimicry. This moment must be set aside in his memory. Then it was time to get to know the new abilities!
Lee Long had an ocean of new experiences. The tail is cool! He immediately appreciated the dexterity and plasticity of the Ferin. Lee did some complexes. The cat's body responded perfectly and fully satisfied his fighting abilities. His new sensitivity was also noteworthy. He was getting used to the new sensations. His sense of smell stepped to new heights. The human nose was losing this contest of racial abilities. The hearing was not much different than before. The greatest challenge was adjusting to sight. Lee Long was opening up new perspectives and discovering flaws.
A delightful and interesting experience was interrupted most unceremoniously and naturally. He wanted to go to the toilet!
The boy immediately reapplied the skill. Finding his native body was a quick and familiar affair. He shook his head and went to the toilet.
This experiment required serious research. Lee Long decided to think hard about the possibility of using his girlfriend for his purposes.
The most important obstacle was the girlfriend's personality. She was a significant figure in the hierarchy of the tribe. In the capital, it is possible to get acquainted with the procedure of ordering a clone. It is possible to learn the procedure of identity verification. It is possible to take a risk and try to pass an identity check. But in the end, Star's father finds out that his daughter ordered a clone for herself! This is valuable information. There will always be those who want to use this information for their purposes. The whole plan goes up in smoke!
Lee Long frowned and resigned himself to the conclusion. He must go to the capital and find himself a model for the Race Dance. He should get a blood pattern from this ferin. Gotta take the time to get to know each other intimately. So many new things to do. But they seemed more pleasant than the vile extortion of money from all sorts of scum.
The little duelist was ready to take a new step on the path of Good and the triumph of Justice.