Empress of Eternity (24 page)

7 Tenmonth 1351, Unity of Caelaarn

By the time Maertyn and Maarlyna woke the next morning, snow was falling heavily enough that even the blue-gray stone of the canal walls was covered, not that such a covering would last, but with heavy snowfall and bitter cold, several days often passed before the snow fully cleared from the stone of the canal and station. After waking, Maertyn took his time, enjoying the moments spent with Maarlyna, both dressing and in eating breakfast.

As she finished sipping the hot cocoa she enjoyed so much, Maarlyna looked to her husband. “You’re worried about what is happening in Caelaarn, much more than usual. Can you tell me why?”

“All sorts of little things. Too many. Crop yields are down across the world. The re-settled are causing demonstrations. Food prices are up. Political maneuvering and accidental deaths among the well-connected in Caelaarn have increased…and I’ve told you about the attempts against me.”

“They’re trying to blackmail you with me, aren’t they?”

“Why would they do that?” he asked. “You haven’t done anything.”

“Except survive when I shouldn’t have.” Maarlyna smiled sadly. “How did you manage it, dearest?”

“You know that. I arranged for the best doctors and regeneration specialists possible.”

Maarlyna shook her head. “You did more than that. I know who and what I am, and I’ve read enough medical articles to know that there was only one way I could have survived.” Her eyes brightened, not quite enough for tears to appear. “You risked everything, didn’t you?”

Maertyn wanted to deny that, but denying it wouldn’t have been true, and yet agreeing was almost as false. “That was never the question. What else could I have done? I hadn’t given you enough of me, especially after…”

“After I lost all chance of having children?”

Maertyn’s eyes were burning, but he shook his head. “I hadn’t fully understood how much you meant to me, and I hadn’t shown it. Then…merely telling you would have been but words, and there are times when words are anything but enough.” He didn’t know what else he could say, except that he loved her, and those words would have seemed trite at the moment.

“Oh…Maertyn…”

The silence was broken by the whine of the wind as the south side door of the station opened. Svorak stepped into the main room, stamping his boots, and shaking snow off his jacket. “Sir, Lady…canal-runner just came. Didn’t think they would with the snow, but it’s not so heavy to the east. Two envelopes, one for each of you.”

Maertyn rose from his chair, walked toward Svorak, and took the letters. “I’m surprised as well. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, sir. Best I be checking the light. Might be a ship or two needing it in the storm.” The light-keeper smiled, then touched the stone, and slipped back out into the snow.

Maertyn looked at one, then the other.

The first heavy envelope was addressed to Lord Maertyn S’Eidolon, in care of the station, and bore the extra delivery fees…and an address he did not recognize. The second he did recognize. “One for me, and one for you. Yours is from your cousin.”

“Lycinna?”

“The very same.”

“You open yours first,” said Maarlyna with a smile.

Maertyn just enjoyed her expression.

“Go ahead,” she prompted.

He walked back and handed her the one envelope, then broke the seal on the second, scanning the letterhead. He frowned as he finished the short missive. “It’s from Ashauer.”

“Might I see it, dear?”

“Of course.” Maertyn handed her the elegantly written missive and moved behind her chair, where he read it again, this time over her shoulder.

The elegant signature was that of Ashauer.

“Matters are getting much, much worse,” Maarlyna observed.

“There’s no need to talk of those more at the moment.” He smiled. “Read your letter.” Then he sat down and watched as she read, just enjoying watching her.

When she finished and looked up, he asked, “What did she have to say?”

She leaned forward and handed him the two sheets. “You can read it yourself?”

“Thank you.” He smiled and took the letter, noting that Lycinna’s script was similar to Maarlyna’s, not so surprisingly, since they’d both had the same tutor as children.

Maertyn handed the letter back to his wife. “She wants you to write back.”

“She’s lonely,” said Maarlyna. “She’s always had the children, and now they’re leaving. Daerix has his work, and the estate doesn’t require that much supervision.” She paused. “I don’t care much for the idea that the Unity is training more and more Protective Service troopers.”

“Agents…” Maertyn said dryly.

“Troopers.” She shook her head. “Are you going to work today?”

“No. I’m spending the day with you. We could even play in the snow.”

Her smile warmed him all the way through.

34 Quad 2471 R.E.

Surprisingly, Eltyn slept decently. He couldn’t help wishing he’d been sleeping closer to Faelyna, rather than on the narrow pallet in the corner of his own workroom. He woke early, at the first sign of diffused light coming through the stone “windows” on twoday. A quick check of the system and the outside monitors showed no one and no vessels nearby. He washed and dressed quickly, only to find Faelyna waiting for him by the ramp down to the lower level.

“I couldn’t sleep any longer,” he said. “I keep wondering what The Twenty will do now.”

“I couldn’t sleep longer either.” She looked at him directly for a moment. “I’m glad you’re here.” Then her eyes dropped.
We need to do something. We can’t just stay trapped inside the station.

Options?
he pulsed.

Such as?

?????

Exactly. Nothing else gets us beyond the first command levels…except freezing the system. Not good now.

Eltyn had to agree with that.
Exactly. Still…someone told me, Eat first. Think later.

Faelyna did smile as they walked down to the lower level.

Rhyana was waiting. “Thought you two might be up early.”

“Don’t you ever sleep?” asked Eltyn.

“Not late. Delivery schedules are—were—always out early.” She pointed to the table. “Sit. Eggs…what passes for ’em…are almost ready. Pastries…sort of, too.”

“Thank you.” Both Eltyn and Faelyna spoke almost simultaneously.

“No need for thanks. You both are doing what you can. Least I can do is feed you. Without you two, I’d not be thinking…or not much except what the riffies wanted.”

“We still appreciate it.” Eltyn slipped into one of the chairs, before which was a platter, and across the narrow table from Faelyna.

As he ate more of the egg-like omelet than he thought he could, Eltyn had to admit that food preparation had improved immeasurably since Rhyana had joined them, especially with the flaky pastries.

“Anyone out there?” asked the delivery woman.

“Antennae don’t show anyone, but the locals are only good for a kay or so.”

“Riffies’ll be back. They want everything their own way.”

Eltyn stiffened at the warnings coming from the system.
Trouble…seismics and locals showing something…coming our way…

They couldn’t…how could they evacuate…

All the lights went out, except for the emergency beacon…

Eltyn immediately accessed the station systems and scanned all the indicators.
Readings show temperatures…
Eltyn swallowed.
…sensors…vaporized…Entire outside power grid gone, even the tidal pump.

Thermonuke? No…there aren’t any…are there?

Eltyn checked the last readings, frozen on the system.
Radiation…but not weapons…superheated
³
steam…

…steam…?

Abruptly…the two exchanged glances. Eltyn checked the ventilation system, but something had shut off all the ducts, and the ventilators had cut off. He closed down the internal net, and the nonessentials, leaving just basic lighting for the moment. They’d need all the power in the inside storage system, and they certainly wouldn’t be leaving the station any time soon. Before long they might have to worry about air quality, but with only the four of them and the size of the station, that wasn’t an immediate concern.

“They wouldn’t…would they?” asked Faelyna. “The area to the north…hundreds of kays…”

“Maybe they evacuated the people.”

“The Twenty? Do you think they’d bother?”

“What happened?” asked Rhyana. “Something bad, from the look of you.”

“Exactly? We don’t know,” replied Eltyn.

“Eltyn…”

“The Twenty dropped—we think—a chunk of nickel iron or something like it out of orbit and aimed its re-entry at us. It looks like it hit water, probably to the west and north of us. That’s just a guess from what information the sensors recorded before they all vaporized.”

“Vaporized? Turned to gas?”

“That’s an educated guess, too. None of the sensors are registering, and the temperatures outside were hot enough to melt, if not vaporize, most metals and composites.”

“You sure? We didn’t feel anything.”

“Inside the station you don’t. We didn’t feel any of the shelling. The whole Earth could fall apart and you wouldn’t know.”

“Can’t we open a door or window and look out…” Rhyana glanced from Eltyn to Faelyna. “It’s too hot?”

“In more ways than one.” Eltyn stopped, then glanced around. Something else had changed, although he couldn’t quite determine what.

“Do you notice something?” asked Faelyna. “The light…”

“It’s sharper…or different…” Eltyn stood, moving away from the table, his eyes going to the ceiling, then to the walls.

Banks of instruments appeared, shimmering as if shrouded in transparent silver, but crisp and solid. They lined the walls of the chamber, but as soon as Eltyn tried to concentrate on a single area, one console or equipment bay was replaced by another, different but appearing equally solid and crisp, and the rate of change varied from moment to moment.

“They keep changing,” said Rhyana.

“We’re seeing all the equipment that’s been here…or will be…Do you think?” Faelyna slipped from her chair and moved until she was beside Eltyn.

He wasn’t certain what to think.

Echoing from the adjoining chamber came a moaning that rose into a thin and piercing scream. “No, no, NO!!!” Then there was silence.

Rhyana hurried to the archway, then turned. “Everything’s changing in here, too. Riffie’s passed out.” After a moment, she added, “There’s a door here now…a real door. Except it’s got six sides. It’s open. Sort of.”

Faelyna started forward immediately. Eltyn joined her as they stepped through the archway. He glanced at their captive, who slumped forward in the chair where he’d been restrained, and then at the hexagonal opening at the east end of the small room. The door didn’t look like an illusion or a projected image, and beyond it stretched a corridor—except that some ten or fifteen yards beyond the opening was another hexagonal door, and it was closed.

Rhyana stepped toward the slumped riffie, reached out, and touched him, looking toward the two scientist-techs. Her mouth opened, but she did not speak.

At that moment, three figures appeared, stepping through the nearer open door. Two of them had short curly brown hair and wore identical shimmering brown singlesuits with the intertwined lightning bolt insignia on their shoulders. All three wore almost resigned expressions, and the man shook his head. Then they vanished.

“They were us!” exclaimed Rhyana. “They were.”

“It could be that means if we go through the door we’ll come back,” suggested Eltyn.

“Or someone wants us to think that,” replied Faelyna.

“What else are we going to do? Stand here and wait? We won’t even be able to check outside for a good day or so, not safely.”

“Sometimes…waiting isn’t a bad option.”

“Where can we possibly go?” asked Eltyn. “The station’s been around for thousands and thousands of years, and no one’s been trapped inside yet.”

“Not that we know of.”

“There would have been traces.”

“What’s the harm of going through a door?”

“A hexagonal door that no one’s ever seen before,” she replied.

“That we know of,” he countered.

That brought a momentary smile to her lips, a smile he appreciated.

“What about the riffie?” asked Faelyna.

“You don’t have to worry about him,” said Rhyana. “He’s dead. Was about to tell you when…all that happened.”

“How could that occur? No one touched him,” Eltyn pointed out.

“Not physically,” countered Faelyna. “But he’s been brain-conditioned at least some, and…”

“You think what he saw…”

“We don’t know what he saw, but you heard that scream.”

“Saw that happen at the Apialor station,” said Rhyana. “Serves him right.”

Eltyn wasn’t totally sure about that. What choices did someone have once they were brain-conditioned? Then he shook his head. “We might as well try the door.”

Faelyna raised her eyebrows.

“More in favor of errors of action than errors of inaction.” Eltyn reached out and took her hand. The two stepped through the hexagonal opening together, Rhyana close behind them.

Eltyn turned to look back, but the door remained open.

“Eltyn…” murmured Faelyna.

He looked forward.

The entire corridor before them was fragmenting into branches and pathways, seemingly an infinite number that shifted and twisted. He swallowed and looked back…only to find that there were at least scores of overlapping hexagonal doors…and all of them were closed.

He turned to Faelyna.

“Only a door?” she asked.

“Do you pick the way or do I?”

She squeezed his hand and started forward…toward the corridor directly ahead…