Warrior Chronicles 3: Warrior's Realm (26 page)

“You forget, Heroc. The Collaboration is a separate entity from the Ares Federation. I can trade with you all I want to.”

“Oh, yes. I understand. That will be a matter for separate negotiations I assume.”

“Yes, of course. Back to the matter at hand. I think I have a solution. If I have all of your queens,” Cort paused here, “If I have
every single one
of your queens, I will allow your species to remain on any planet they currently occupy. When each planet’s population drops to below one hundred thousand H’uumans, the Federation will begin transporting that planet’s remaining inhabitants to your homeworld. After ten of
my
human years, all remaining members of your species will be quarantined to your homeworld. Any members of your species found outside of your homeworld, without Federation approval, will be summarily executed.”

“I see. You will let us die off, rather than euthanize us.”

“Yes. Given your lifespan, I believe it to be an appropriate solution. Will H’uum accept it?”

“Does he have a choice, Cort?”

“Yes. He can always hide queens from us, or allow others to do so.” Cort stood and walked to the coffee pot, where he refilled his cup while continuing, “But if he does so, I have to go back to the original terms. I will wipe out every remaining planet of the former Cuplan Empire.”

“I believe he will agree to the terms,” Heroc said. She stood and walked to Cort’s window, where she saw Kimberly approaching with Coke. “We should finish for now. Kimberly is here.”

“She can wait a bit longer for you, Heroc. There is one more thing we need to talk about. We have most of your technology, but I need to know how you crystallized planets. H’uum has not shared that with me. Why not?”

“Look at what you have accomplished with three-hundred year old technology, Cortland. You have brought the scourge of the galaxy to its knees. If I give you that technology, you will become exactly like us. And even if you do not, your successor will.” Heroc thought about Dalek. She loved the human child, and now that she understood his father’s burden, she did not want to pass that burden along to the boy. “I will not give you that technology, Cortland. Not if you were to destroy my entire species.”

“Isn’t that H’uum’s decision?”

Heroc watched a small reptile fly overhead. “General, do you trust me?”

“Yes, I do.”

“Then let the secret die with me.” Heroc finished her sweetwater and faced Cort, “I have taken steps to make sure I am the only remaining member of my species that knows all the aspects of the technology, and you have already destroyed our old homeworld. So there are only a handful of our people who even know parts of the technology, and they too, will be gone soon. The secret must die with me.”

“How many have you killed?”

“My burden is irrelevant. Let this be my gift to Dalek.”

Cort was touched by her sincerity, and her obvious love for his son. So much so, that he decided not to push the issue. At that moment, he was confident that Heroc would not betray him if he trusted her. “Convince me that you are right, and I will drop the requirement.”

“It was not our technology. We found it buried on one of the first planets we colonized. We destroyed a moon and two outer planets before we understood it. By that time, we knew that those who had come before us had destroyed themselves with it. You have seen how we put it to use, and it has had the virtually the same effect on our civilization.”

“You are saying we don’t know enough to use it safely. Like the medallions.”

“Medallions?”

“The method I used to travel into the future.”

“Ah, yes. The Nill’s transition technology.”

“Yes. Apparently we were using it incorrectly.”

“Would you have Dalek’s life shortened by technology your people could not control?”

Cort thought about Heroc’s words as he finished his coffee. Kimberly walked in as he said, “No. No, I would not.”

“Then let the secret die with me, Cortland. I don’t ask you as a H’uuman. I ask you as someone who has grown fond of your spawn. Give me this one thing, that he may benefit by it.”

“What are you talking about?” Kimberly asked.

Cort held his hand up to Kim and said, “Heroc, I will grant you this one thing, for Dalek’s sake. I wouldn’t for any other living creature. Don’t betray my trust.”

“I will not, Cortland. The technology shall die with me.”

“What are you two talking about? Tell me now.”

“Kimberly, it is of no matter. I was simply promising Cortland that I will always honor Dalek.”

“There is more than that.” Kim knew that she had missed something intense.

“It’s okay, babe. We were just finalizing the rest of the treaty,” Cort said. Turning to Heroc, he added, “The matter of the honey will have to be addressed by Kimberly. She is in charge of this planet.”

“The honey?” Kim asked. “What about it?”

“Heroc thinks it is worthy of being traded to her world.”

--

A week before his wedding to Kimberly, Cort was told in no uncertain terms that he would not be sleeping at home the night before the big event. He considered bunking with his Marine officers, but decided instead to go camping. He and Bane left Bergh Station four days before the ceremony, made their way to the northern tip of the continent, and set up camp near where Kim was planning to build their retreat. A temporary ring was there to protect workers from the dinosaurs, and Cort and Bane stopped there to rest. The first night was uneventful, and the next morning they continued their trip to, and then across the twenty kilometer long isthmus to the northern continent, and set up camp not far from where a small river left a narrow gorge, becoming shallow and spreading into a wide delta.

About one hundred meters above sea level, Cort picked a campsite and began gathering firewood. Once he cleared a five-meter circle and stacked several small stones around a depression he cut into the ground, he stacked the wood nearby and built his fire, ready to be lit later that evening. Bane then left to scout the area around the camp, leaving his scent to warn other animals away, while his alpha built a lean-to on the windward side of the fire ring. When Bane hadn’t returned thirty minutes later, Cort called him, and was answered with a stressed howl that put Cort on his feet and running. Calling the wolf as he ran, Cort found Bane trapped in a deep hole that he couldn’t leap from.

“What the hell did you get into, boy?” Cort asked as he pulled a spool of the super-strong molecular wire rope his family produced on Earth from a pouch in his tactical vest. Securing it to a small boulder nearby, he lowered himself into the hole with the wolf. Once he was at the bottom, he checked Bane for injuries, before taking a look around the deep, well-like cut in the ground. The ground beneath him was soft, but was dryer than Cort expected it to be. Looking to his left, he saw a what appeared to be a small opening, perhaps big enough for Dalek’s head to fit through.

When Bane realized that Cort had seen the opening, he started digging and within a few seconds, disappeared into the hole. Intrigued, Cort decided to follow the wolf rather than call him back, and checked to make sure both his knife and his handgun were ready. Then he attached the molewire to a clip on the back of his vest, and crawled in after his friend. It was about ten meters before he was able to stand up in what he now knew was a cave, and when he was fully upright, he called to Bane. “Bane. Heel!” Reluctantly, the wolf returned to his side as he pulled the hood of his FALCON suit over his face, to take advantage of its augmented light capabilities. When he activated the suits IR system, he was astounded.
It’s not a cave. It’s a tunnel.

He was standing on a wide, nearly smooth floor that gradually sloped downward, into the depths of the planet. A few hundred meters in front of them, Cort saw a sharp turn in the structure. He activated the mapping system in the FALCON and began recording as they walked forward.
Wynn is going to love this.

After the cave turned, Cort saw Bane push through a dirt wall that opened another passage to Cort’s view. That passage quickly widened into a great cavern that reminded Cort of the bomb bunker that was his first home in this century. It was much larger though, and this cave was natural, not a man made shelter from weapons of death. It wasn’t its vastitude that grabbed his attention, though. He was captivated by the drawings on the long wall encompassing the cavern. There were crude images of many of the plants and animals he had come to know on Solitude, as well as a few that he didn’t. He followed the wall around the cavern recording every square centimeter of the artwork.
This is incredible. John Wills would have loved this. But who made them?

Cort’s mind left the memory of his dead archaeologist friend, and went back to the drawings. They seemed to depict one continuous scene around the length of the wall. It took almost an hour to get to the far end of the cavern, and by that time, Cort knew the mural was a history of the planet, drawn out in one long timeline. He had seen what appeared to be an ancient comet strike, great fires, and even what he thought was a massive seismic event.
There is no way that just one person recorded this much history.

Another thirty minutes of walking the perimeter recorded more images of natural events. He saw volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, and even changes in the stars. Cort came to a section that showed the system’s sun burning hotter, and little or no foliage, dead animals and empty rivers.
A drought?

A little more than two-thirds of the way around the wall, when Cort could see the place where he began his journey around Solitude’s history, the drawings ended. The last image was clearly a grave. In the grave, the drawing showed a human-like being with light hair. It appeared to be a male, and in his hand was what Cort
thought
was a drawing instrument.
He drew his own death. But where is his grave?

Bane was beside Cort and nuzzled his thigh. The man reached down and stroked the wolf’s fur, wondering about the artist or artists whose work he had just experienced. It wasn’t just a visual experience, though. Cort felt the images in his very being. It was a visceral, almost
spiritual
experience to him. 

How old are the images? There were some kind of humanoids here at one time. How long ago did they die off? Maybe they left. But why leave him here? I have to get this to some archaeologists. Maybe John’s old friend in Asia. The one who gave me Bane. Tsao, I think. Yuan Tsao. Better yet, I have to get him here. John trusted him. He will protect the world.

--

Cortland Addison was in his dress uniform when Dar escorted Kimberly Point down the aisle, between their guests. The last time he wore dress blues, the stripes and chevrons of a sergeant’s rank were on its sleeves. This time, his epaulettes bore the stars of a general. His chest bore a myriad of medals, awarded to him by a thankful government that hadn’t existed for over a century, but Kimberly insisted he wear the uniform. “It tells the galaxy that you are special,” she had said.

As sharp as Cort looked, Kimberly was stunning. Her lithe frame bore the caramel colored dress like the royalty she was to the audience that had gathered to watch the couple formally become one. Its fabric was form fitting and highlighted her shape well. But as she walked, it sparkled, giving her the effect of a living jewel. Cort had to fight his own arousal as her hips shifted with each step she took toward him. When she was finally beside him, she handed a bouquet of native and Terran flowers to Heroc, and turned to Cort.

He lifted Kimberly’s hand and slid his mother’s golden ring onto her finger, where it joined the diamond band she already wore. Once the ring was in place, he said, “Kimberly Point, I have traveled across the very fabric of time to find you. It is your comfort that I seek, and my only peace will be in your arms. You are my destiny, and I will love you until I draw my last breath.”

Kim lifted Cort’s hand and slipped a simple gray band onto his ring finger. Looking up to him, her voice was filled with emotion as she said, “Cortland Addison, from our first kiss, I knew that our fate was forever joined. You have been my savior and my protector, and I take you as my husband, now and forever.”