01 Taxilas Children

TAXILA'S CHILDREN
wondered why such a place had been abandoned but his companions weren't talkative, so he
kept his peace. The descent was slow down the far side of the hill. Danyk said abruptly.
"We abandoned our cities and places like this, because of sickness."
"That must have been a long time back, the sickness must have died out. You could rebuild
- it wouldn't take much."
"In your cities, is there peace and harmony?"
"We have our problems - "
"So did we, and that is the reason why our people chose to leave the cities and return to the
fields and countryside. From our evolutionary ancestors, we had an inheritance to roam the
forests and plains freely, keeping our distance from each other in clearly defined territory. We
still have the territorial instinct - your race has this also, so has every other, no matter how
civilised or cultured it becomes. The Lynxe are no different to all the others. Close together in
cities, we found that tensions were created in our minds, we had civil disturbances and
disharmony. Our ancestors abandoned the city system and we now live scattered across the
face of our world. There is room for all. In that way, we can live in peace."
"Tell me, what happens when your population exceeds the viable area you have available?
One day you will have a population explosion, just as it happened on Old Earth. If it hadn't
been for the Pollution Crisis, we would have exceeded our resources in the matter of years.
We have much the same sort of problem now on New Earth. We're running out of space and
resources. The same thing will happen here!"
Danyk and Zayez were silent, the old man's two companions were ahead, momentarily,
Steve wondered if these Adepts took a vow of silence, the two men had not spoken since the
beginning of the journey. They continued down the hill. The silence was prolonged and Steve
wondered if he had offended them again. Danyk seemed to force out an answer.
"Steve, Zayez has already told you, we are a dying race. Every year there are less of the
Lynxe. Our children die at birth, even when there has been a conception. There is great
infertility too, conception is very difficult. Even if a child survives birth, it is usually weak
and ailing - "
He had spoken in thought, as if it was something he didn't want to express verbally. Steve
felt a welling up of compassion.
"Isn't there anything that can be done?"
It was Zayez who responded.
"We are a much older race than yourself, Steve Holt, Perhaps we have lost the genetic
potency of our ancestors. Perhaps this is where the long chain of evolution leads. Logic tells
us that there will come a time when the race must come to an end."
They fell silent again, Steve wished that he hadn't raised the subject. At the base of the hill,
they entered a forest. He turned back to take one last look at the temple on the hill. The light
shone full on it, accentuating the massive but broken lines of the masonry. He wondered if
they had made the right decision so long ago. It was their decision to make - not his or his
race's. He hadn't asked them how long ago it had been - it didn't matter.
The forest was cool and dark, a pleasant relief after the warmth that had hammered into
them on the hillside. Even though it was the time of harvest, the days hadn't grown cooler, if
anything, it was hotter than before.
They were still within the forest when they camped. Steve couldn't get Hara out of his
mind, the forest brought back too many memories. He wondered where she was and how she
was being treated. They had camped by the side of a small stream which tumbled down from
a rocky outcrop. It widened into a small pool at the base. Bushes grew to the water's edge
except for a small area where the light from their star found a way through the tree canopy. It
was an idyllic spot and apparently well known to his companions.
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