Worlds in Chaos by James P. Hogan Page A

more Japanese who seemed to be together. “Who are the other companies partnering Amspace?” the one who appeared to be the senior asked when they had been talking for a few minutes. “We could be interested in discussing further funding. How can we get in touch with the correct people?”
    Keene mentioned Marvin Curtiss and offered to arrange an introduction. The Japanese seemed pleased. As Keene detached himself, Cavan drifted by, nursing a glass. “Just doing my job, you see,” he murmured. “ ‘Pump them when they don’t suspect it,’ is what I was told. A tacky world we live in, Landen. Tacky world.” And then he was gone again.
    Before anyone else could pounce on him, Keene made his way over to Sariena. They had managed to exchange barely a few words so far. She was sitting on the arm of one of the couches, still managing to do justice to the unpretentious but stylish dress that she was wearing—black and sleeveless, with a high, oriental-style neck and just the right touch of trim—but closer he could see that weariness was beginning to show. A slim woman in a light green dress, with graying hair tied high, was standing talking to her. Keene remembered her being introduced earlier as with the Smithsonian but couldn’t recall her name. Sariena smiled as he approached.
    “Lan, do join us. Have you two met yet?”
    “Oh, we all know who he is,” the woman said.
    Keene smiled uneasily for a moment. “Smithsonian,” he managed.
    “Catherine Zetl,” the woman said, getting him off the hook. “I’m the historian.”
    “Oh, right.”
    “Ancient—the history, not me. Well, I hope not too much, anyway.”
    “Catherine has been telling me some fascinating things,” Sariena said. “She’s just back from Arabia—involved with the Joktanian discoveries there.”
    Keene searched his memory. There had been a stir in the news a couple of years back, and occasional mentions since in the scientific literature. “Some civilization they found from way back, isn’t it? Caused some surprises for the specialists.” Which about exhausted his knowledge of the subject.
    “That’s putting it mildly,” Zetl said. “It’s turned all our ideas upside down. The Sumerians and Babylonians were supposed to have been the earliest to settle and build, but these people date from much earlier. Yet some of their architecture and workmanship appears more sophisticated. And there’s no obvious relationship to the cultures that came later. It’s as if they represent some lost age that flourished long before it should have been possible. For some reason it ended abruptly, and then what we’ve always thought was the beginning of civilization was a second start that came much later.”
    “Isn’t it fascinating, Lan?” Sariena said again.
    “So do we know what ended it?” Keene asked, getting more interested. “Was it your Kronian supercomet again?”
    “Oh, I’m impressed by the Kronians’ arguments, but I refuse to be dragged into any of that tonight,” Zetl said, holding up a hand. “In any case, it couldn’t have been the comet, Venus, or whatever. This race existed long before the Egyptian Middle Kingdom and the Exodus. And I use the word ‘race’ deliberately. They were large—comparable to the Kronians around here.”
    “The name Joktanian comes from Noah’s grandson,” Sariena informed Keene. “I didn’t know that.”
    “That’s who the ancient Arabic legends say the first people of the southwest peninsula were descended from,” Zetl said, nodding. “Their word is Qahtan.” She glanced away. “Oh, there’s somebody about to leave that I must catch. Excuse me.” She laid a hand briefly on Sariena’s arm. “Sariena, we do have to talk more about all this. Do call me when they give you a moment—if they ever do.”
    “I certainly will.”
    Zetl excused herself again and hurried away.
    Sariena looked at Keene, sighed, and rotated her face slowly to stretch her neck. “Oh my. Is this what